Erected in 1925, the Nash Building, consisting of four shops with flats upstairs, was designed by Herbert Leslie Hickson. In 1929, a fifth shop and upper floor was added at northern end to the design of O.A. Jorgensen. Elizabeth Lily Nash, wife of long-time Mayor and MP for Palmerston North, James Alfred Nash, was the building’s owner. As Elizabeth Grater, nee Keogh, she had purchased the site in 1894, the year before her marriage to James Nash. The building remained owned by her family until 1978. A wide variety of businesses have occupied the five shops in this building.
This building’s street façade design is largely authentic, especially the original shop fronts. Conservation architect Ian Bowman described these as being “a joy of original clear coated timber framing, leaded top-lights, and tiled spandrels and pilasters.” The centrally located front entrance to the first floor, is a clear-coated timber glazed door with a leaded top-light.
