A section of single-storey shops that have served customers from the capital's earliest days is a step closer to being granted permanent heritage protection.
A section shops on Giles Street and Kennedy Street in Kingston have been provisionally registered for protection by the ACT Heritage Council.
Heritage Council chair Duncan Marshall said the council had considered three nominations that had covered larger parts of the Kingston shops precinct before settling on a provisional registration for a smaller section of shops from the area's original development.
"These shops were the first fully formed shopping precinct in Canberra. They were essential for goods and services, but they were also a centre for socialising and employment," Mr Marshall said.
"Development of the early Kingston shops meant that the first public servants and those who constructed Canberra didn't need to order goods and groceries from canvassers going door-to-door, or make the trip into Queanbeyan anymore; instead, they had a central group of shops that sold almost everything they wanted."
By 1958, shops at Kingston sold hats, haberdashery, groceries, small goods, Swiss watches, AWA Radiola wirelesses, evening wear, "modern" shoes, "high class confectionery", hardware, pharmaceuticals, sporting goods, books, and more.
"Kingston Shopping Centre offers the discriminating shopper some unusual and attractive features," a guide to the centre published by the Kingston Traders Association said at the time.
The Heritage Council said the registration would not stop current or sympathetic new uses of the buildings.
"In the case of the early Kingston shops, it is worth noting the similar situation with the Sydney and Melbourne Buildings which have been on the ACT Heritage Register since 1997, and they continue to be used and sympathetically adapted when necessary," the council said.
Consultation will now begin with the shops' owners and the community to explain the provisional registration and seek feedback.
Leases for the blocks at what was originally known at Eastlake and later became the Kingston shops were offered in the first sale of commercial land in Canberra in the 1920s.
"At first, building at Eastlake was slow, but the pace has been accelerated very noticeable during the last few months. The demand too for shops has been very great, and the owner of shops can generally count on having them leased before they are within sight of completion," the first issue of The Canberra Times reported on September 3, 1926.
The provisional registration is open for public comment until July 1, after which time the council will decide whether to permanently register the shops for heritage protection.
In February, the council provisionally registered the Belconnen Library, noting it was "a good example of the late 20th century international style of architecture reflected by attributes such as its sculptural qualities with curvilinear forms, sharpness and precision, control of sun and shade and cantilevered forms".
The council also confirmed the registration of the Griffith Flats on Canberra Avenue, finding the group of buildings was a "a well-preserved example of Canberra's medium density government housing designed for public servants and as such contribute to our understanding and appreciation of the broad pattern and evolution of the ACT's history and heritage".
