NEW LOOK FOR PONSONBY COMMUNITY CENTRE AND PONSY KIDS PRESCHOOL

We have been thinking for a while now that our logo needed a refresh… something more representative of the local community and also the history of the building and area.

We wanted something positive and noticeable, something recognisable as being definitely ‘Ponsonby’!

The community centre is extremely proud of the key role the Ponsonby community has always had in supporting and nurturing NZ’s LGBTTQIA+ population so we felt the Pride rainbow colours needed to have a starring role in any new branding we created.

The late 19th Century architecture also needed to make an appearance – the building was purpose built in 1897 as an infants' school extension to Ponsonby Primary, situated across the road on what was once Church Street (now Cowan Street). The community centre's distinctive double gabled roof with steep pitch, ties it to the predominant style of architecture in Ponsonby – the historic villa.

A big part of the community centre is our preschool, Ponsy Kids. Ponsy Kids has been in operation as a not-for-profit preschool for over 20 years and boasts long serving teaching staff and a mixed open plan approach for our 2-5-year-olds. As early childhood education was what our building was originally built for, it’s only fitting that Ponsy Kids' new look also echoes the building outline.

The other key functions of the community centre will also have their own distinct look, so watch out for our new imagery online.

Places now available for morning, afternoon or full day sessions!

We are licenced for tamariki aged 2-5yrs and offer 20 hours free ECE and high teacher ratios

CYCO: CELEBRATING 30 YEARS

Three decades is quite some time, so Ponsonby News asked Darren Murray to tell us some of the history of the business?

As he explained, “This is CYCO’s 30th year and we are very proud to still be around. The store was originally started by Ponsonby local Chris Auld, who in 1993 was a triathlete but was struggling to get good service from the existing bike stores.”

The first store was at 282 Ponsonby Road which is now the site for Superette clothing store. It was previously a design store and had great architecture with high wooden ceilings. CYCO has always been able to cater from the new cyclist, to having clients compete at Commonwealth and Olympic games. With the success of the store it quickly out grew the space but it wasn’t until 2009 that it moved to a larger premise next to Prego.

Darren continues, “I have been part of the team at all three stores and when Chris decided to retire from being a bike shop owner, he offered me the opportunity that I couldn’t turn down. With this, we decided to move the store to our current location in Kingsland – a store that reminds us of our start in the original smaller store on Ponsonby Road. Kingsland has allowed us to still cater and help out the Ponsonby and greater community with the same quality standards that Chris put in place back in ’93.”

Is it old fashioned cycles or do you also have electric models for sale?

CYCO works differently from most shops. We only have a dozen or so bikes on the floor, we get to show you examples of bikes we can sell but not just limited to. This benefits the customer hugely as it means we always order the correct bike, in the correct colour, with the correct components, so then you will be 100 percent happy with your purchase and it is perfect for you.

We offer both E-bikes and conventional bikes in the road, mountain and gravel categories although we do have access to commuter bikes and kids' bikes if required. We hope this makes for a unique experience for every customer who comes to purchase a bike from us.

What are the most popular bikes?

Currently, road bikes are having a boom and E-mountain bikes are extremely popular. These are great as it makes your trip out to Woodhill Forest more worthwhile as you can go further than if you are on a conventional bike but have the same amount of fun.

What about the security aspect? Are they easily stolen?

The big thing with bikes is not to make them an easy target. A good lock is a great deterent and now we have access to many different tracking devices that can be fitted to your bike to make finding it a lot easier

Do you help with finance if required?

CYCO can offer finance through Qcard. Either through its Qmastercard or more traditional finance options.

Do you offer a repair service?

One thing CYCO has always prided itself on since its conception is the quality of its service dept. Jakob and Cosmo are well-respected mechanics in the industry and can perform any job that your bike requires in a relatively timely manner. We have a full workshop that can cover any job required, from a simple puncture repair to tuning DI2 shifting or updating the firmware on your E-bike – we can do it all.

We’ve heard rumours about your CEO, Chewie. Does he come to work every day?

Currently, Chewie is on a hiatus and loving life at home, we had a daughter born five months ago and he has been helping out with babysitting duties. His return is well anticipated and he will be back raring to go by the end of the year.