The owner of Mt Lofty House and Sequoia Lodge has his eyes firmly set on his next project – an almost 160-year-old Hills church.

Hotelier David Horbelt has emerged the winning bidder of 147 Mount Barker Road, Stirling, which has sold in a $2.75m deal, according Land Services SA records.

A local icon since its construction in 1868, the historic church served as the home of Aptos Cruz Galleries for the past 35 years, specialising in contemporary art and furniture, antiques and tribal art from around the world. It also held regular exhibitions.

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It will now be converted into a restaurant, according to selling agent Josh Biggs of Harris Real Estate, who said the property sparked plenty of buyers’ interest.

“We had a lot of interstate inquiries, which were quite strong out of Sydney, but, interestingly enough, there was also a lot of local interest,” he said.

“A lot of people wanted to turn it into a residence but in the end, a commercial buyer bought it but we had a variety of ideas floating around as to what it could be used for.

“But it’s now becoming a restaurant.”

The 156-year-old church has changed hands for the first time in 37 years.

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It served as the home of Aptos Cruz Galleries for the past 35 years.

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The property will be turned into a restaurant that will likely attract new and old visitors to Stirling.

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Works to transform the property into a culinary destination have already begun with Scaffolding enveloping the 156-year-old property since October.

The church currently comprises a number of spaces, including the main hall, dedicated retail rooms, a central reception area, offices, and s mezzanine showroom.

An additional rear hall – added in 1890 and proudly Stirling’s first primary school – expands the footprint further, stepping out to sculpture gardens and 200-year-old oak trees.

Mr Biggs said he hoped the sale would help revitalise the once popular tourist town after a number of years of uncertainty.

“I think Covid brought a bit of a change and combine that with the impact of the Woolworths fire 12 months ago – it just changed Stirling so much to the point that the central part of the town is gone,” he said.

“For retailers it’s been hard and going to continue to be hard, so to have this sort of investment in a building in the main street between Stirling and Aldgate is significant.

“The local person (who bought it) is someone who really knows what Stirling was and could be again and that’s why he’s prepared to put his money into it.”

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Works to transform the church into a culinary destination have already begun.

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The church garden features 200-year-old oak trees.

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David Horbelt is behind the $2.75m sale.

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Vendors Steve and Pat Ronayne, who owned the church for 37 years, told The Advertiser there had been no sole reason behind the sale.

“Number one, we are getting long in the tooth,” he said.

“Both Pat and I are closer to 80 then 70.

“The gallery has been fantastic for us, it’s allowed us to travel and do the sort of exhibitions that we wanted to do. It’s been a great experience.

“(But) business conditions and imports are very difficult, you’re looking at six and seven months lead time, things have gotten harder.

“I guess we’ve got to the age where you think, ‘do I need this? Do we need this frustration?

“So it’s not a split decision, it’s something that was considered.”