perhaps no coincidence his departure coincided with the gentrification triffid that enveloped Ponsonby right around the mid-90's. he got out while the getting out was good. I'm still in shock the place went from a low rent Pacific Island community in the 1970's to having those same old bogsquat tinpot shanty houses selling for millions of dollars now.
ps, as an aside did you know pretty much all of Ponsonby Rd is owned by one man? Friedlander. He was my shops landlord in the 90's. The archetypal fatcat. Only met him once. When I went in to his office on the 708th floor downtown to pay my lease. I paid in coins. $1,950. In loose change. He was very patient with me. It probably looked like I was trying to make some sort of wild and youthful punk rock anti-capitalist statement, sticking it to the man yeahhh here's your money.... but really it was just cos I was so thick and broke and disorganised hahaha
