Mr Edwards is one of an ambitious trio working to reopen the building’s iconic doors before the end of April.

Late last year The Armidale Club called last drinks, with financial woes eventually closing the music venue on February 1. 

The closure prompted a wave of disappointment from residents, members and musicians who had played on the club’s stage.

But a call for an extraordinary meeting on the club’s Facebook page caused a flurry of excitement late last week.  The Armidale Club Board president Jon Anderson broke the good news. 

“We were approached by a group of individuals who have a wealth of business and hospitality skills and are prepared to take over the club - and its incumbent debt - and reinvigorate the venue to a standard that all our patrons would expect,” Mr Anderson said.

“They will re-engage a new team to oversee a vastly improved operating model.”

Mr Edwards, Kate Richards and Damien Pocock wouldn’t describe the building as “desperate”, but said it could do with sprucing up.

“It had good bones, but it needs a lot of love,” Ms Richards said. 

“WE thought it would be a simple ripping up of this or that… but it has been epic.”

The trio have spent a good portion of the past fortnight ripping up carpets, painting ceilings and tearing out floorboards.

While there is quite a bit of work being done under The Armidale Club roof, Mr Edwards said the original vibe of the place would remain. 

 “A lot of the memorable features of the building will be repositioned or repurposed,” Mr Edwards said.

“We had to keep the bar and the fire place.”

The Armidale Club Limited will remain as a registered club and Mr Edwards, Ms Richards and Mr Pocock will take over from the current board. 

They will seek an independent licence and the entity of The Armidale Club Limited as a registered club will be replaced by their individual business.

Mr Edwards said the trio would work with the club to preserve the unique spirit of the business.

“We’re going to continue that ethos of the building,” he said.

“Eventually we’ll have The Groover’s Lounge.

“We want to pay homage to the people who did a lot of stuff here.”