‘It’s seen a lot of parties’: Seller of 61 Kennedy Street takes us back to Kingston in the 1970s

It’s hard to imagine a time when “no-one wanted to buy a house in Kingston” but Rob Painter remembers it well.

It was the late 1970s: the inner south suburb was packed with students and hippies, living in run-down houses that had been zoned for redevelopment and allowed to deteriorate by developers. 

Young Canberrans in flares, patterned shirts and long hair walked and cycled the streets, and Green Square was the place to be: specifically the Boot and Flogger, the pub tucked in the corner where you’d grab a beer before heading out onto the lawn to listen to a local band.

“It was an interesting area in the 1970s, to say the least,” Rob says.

“There were older people still in government houses but most people who were entering home ownership weren't interested in buying in Kingston because its future was uncertain. 

“I’d come from inner Sydney and so I loved the bohemian vibe.”

A young Rob, who’d studied architecture in Sydney before moving to the capital in 1976 to work for the Department of Urban and Regional Development, was loving his steady income as a graduate clerk. He’d thought about buying a house, and when he drove past 61 Kennedy Street, a 40-year-old ex-govvie, he loved the idea of living among the bohemian vibe of Kingston.

“It was for sale for $32,000,” Rob recalls.

“My salary at the time was $8,000 a year. The most anyone would lend me wass $30,000 — so that was the offer I put in and it was mine.”

61 Kennedy Street became home “almost immediately”, mostly thanks to friends packed into the lounge room on Friday and Saturday nights; drinking, smoking, playing board games and dancing to Led Zeppelin and the Rolling Stones.

“Oh, this house has seen a lot of parties,” Rob says.

“I was very social when I first bought it. I'm gay and I've got a wide group of friends. It was a very social house — arguably too social.

“I got out the old photo albums, dusted them off: I haven't looked at them for years.

“It was a very fun time. I've got lots of happy memories associated with this house.”

An extension in 1997 saw a new section added to the back of the house; opening up the kitchen and adding a second living area and a new laundry. The old laundry became a second bathroom at this time, while the main bathroom was updated in 2006.

Ever the entertainer, Rob designed the extended home to facilitate its many visitors, including friends, and nieces and nephews from overseas and across Australia who wanted to see Australia’s young capital. He created a separate zone of the house for himself; with the main bedroom, bathroom and dressing room able to be closed off for privacy while guests were staying.

After 46 years, Rob is selling up — it’s only the second time the 148sqm heritage-listed home has been for sale in its 87-year history. Originally built in 1936, the property was owned by the Commonwealth Government until 1963, when the sitting tenant bought it. Rob bought it from this tenant in 1977.

The new owners can extend the home, Rob says, in line with heritage guidelines, but the house cannot be knocked down. It’s one of around 50 homes in the Eastlake Heritage Housing Precinct: a precious reminder of a fledgling capital’s early years.

“It's not a large family house,” Rob says.

“I see the new owners as a young professional couple, maybe with dogs, or a retired couple who like to garden.

“A small family could happily live here.

“But it’s definitely the perfect property for someone hoping to own a beautiful piece of Canberra history.”

And Rob won’t be too far away – he’s bought a penthouse apartment just around the corner.

Number 61 Kennedy Street, Kingston, goes to auction at 10.30am on Saturday 23 September 2023.

View the full listing.