Table of Contents

Foreword; Preface; Establishing a city; Serving a growing metropolis; Amalgamating the Auckland isthmus; Laying a new foundation; Constructing the future; Entertainments, institutions and infrastructure; Auckland's cultural divide; The Fletcher years; Fletcher vs Banks; Banksie I; Hubbard vs Banks; The big-spending council; Banksie II: the council's last term; Finale; Appendices; Notes; Index

About the Author

An Aucklander by birth, Michael Bassett grew up in Mt Albert, graduated from the University of Auckland, and taught there in the 1960s and 1970s. He served on the Auckland City Council and spent five terms in Parliament where he was Minister of Local Government, Health, Internal Affairs and Arts and Culture. He has held professorships in Canada and the United States, and is the author of several biographies of New Zealand prime ministers as well as numerous other works. In 2004, he won the Qantas Media Award for Best Political Columnist in New Zealand.