Description of Historic Place

The stucco-clad Zink's Grocery Store, a simple wood-frame shop with an attached residence, occupies a prominent corner on a major traffic route at the periphery of Brandon's east end. Built in 1932, the one-storey structure is set within an older mixed-use neighbourhood that has undergone considerable redevelopment since full-service local groceterias were at their commercial height. The site's municipal designation applies to the exterior of the building.

Heritage Value

Zink's Grocery Store exemplifies the type of independent corner groceterias that were common in urban neighbourhoods before the era of major food-retailing chains. The store, which retains much of its original character, clearly conveys its role of accommodating a family-owned business intimately connected to its local market. In scale, design, materials and finishes, the structure displays its small business roots, as well as physical compatibility with its residential surroundings. The large storefront windows, convenient corner location on a major traffic route and attached residence similarly reflect the building's dual commercial and domestic functions. Built and operated by Albert Zink and his family, the full-service grocery store, complete with a busy meat section and Brandon's first sub-post office, held a special place in the city's business community and was a landmark in the neighbourhood it served for nearly 50 years.

Source: City of Brandon By-law No. 6644, February 25, 2002

Character-Defining Elements

Key elements that define the site's heritage character include:
- the building's location on the northeast corner of 1st Street and Louise Avenue in Brandon, with the storefront flush with the 1st Street sidewalk and the attached residence also facing 1st Street, but fronted by a small lawn

Key elements that define the utilitarian exterior of Zink's Grocery Store include:
- the L-shaped box-like design with a tar-and-gravel flat roof, light-coloured stucco finish and concrete foundation
- the original storefront window space that extends across the entire front of the store and around the southwest corner to one section facing south

Key elements that define the store's interior character and its connection to Albert Zink include:
- the layout, with the central recessed entrance opening onto a low-ceilinged open space unbroken by columns or other fixtures and with the area at the back separated from the public space by a wall with a pass-through
- the original tongue-and-groove wooden ceiling and wall panelling and the still-used shelving on the north and south walls built by Albert Zink
- original artifacts such as the meat cooler, walk-in freezer and post office wicket


Key elements that define the character of the attached residence include:
- its rectangular form with small flat-roofed porches on the front and back, stucco finish of the same shade as the store and ample rectangular windows
- interior features such as the stained and varnished original wooden doors and transom windows and hardwood flooring, etc.