SCHOOL ZONES:
Stanmore Bay primary, Whangaparaoa College.
CONTACT:
Karen Franklin, 021 779 838, Harcourts.
Lorne Weir and his family used to rent holiday accommodation at the other end of Stanmore Bay before deciding to buy.
Lorne, who lives in Auckland and has been retired for 19 years, reckons he suggested the idea of buying with his late wife, Celeste, but she wasn't overly keenso he and his son got a bit "bolshy" one day and went to have a look at what was available.
The next minute they had bought a large corner section from a man living in a couple of small buildings on the site.
Celeste wasn't mad at all, telling them she had half expected that was what they would do.
That was back in 1984 when the area was still rural. The family had a great time holidaying not far from the pretty little beach down the road and having tents and campervans of people staying.
After three or four years, they decided to expand: "We elected to actually go and see a fella by the name of Haines Haulage and buy a second-hand house."
Lorne remembers the day their holiday home -- an airy two-bedroom motel unit from Papatoetoe -- arrived.
They had been told it would need to be delivered by December 18, because the holiday traffic meant the unit wouldn't be able to go on the roads after that, and that it would be on site by about 6am.
"It came in two pieces, it's a wonderful process. We were nervously waiting and it arrived on the dot."
Image 1 of 6: Put your personal stamp on this one. Photos / Fiona Goodall, Getty Images
He recalls how the workers drilled posts and everything was pretty much done in one day.
"It was incredible.. they didn't even break a pane of glass."
Lorne has spent a few months getting the property ready for sale, which has meant sorting through a lot of memories.
He says a highlight was all the entertaining they did and one of their priorities after the unit arrived was to build a large deck.
Celeste issued a challenge that everything had to be finished by the end of January for Auckland Anniversary Weekend and that they would then have a hangi.
Lorne points to a spot in the corner of the section. That was the hangi spot, and they had several hangis over the years.
They planted trees for privacy, including a totara which was a seedling from their home in Epsom, and a pohutukawa given to him by his in-laws, and there is a glimpse of the sea. There were many good times had here, Lorne says.
He thinks the unit is from the 1970s. It has big windows and a pot belly stove, and the whole site is a sun trap, he says.
He left it pretty much as it was but thinks it could be turned into a lovely home: "You could really develop this place I feel, it's got tons of potential."
The original buildings they lived in are still there, which he thinks would make great studio/office/study spaces, and while once the nearest supermarket was Orewa now there are supermarkets and amenities only a short walk away.
While the decision to sell has been hard, Lorne's children live in London now, so his plan is to buy an apartment in the city so his grandchildren can come and study at the University of Auckland.
