The cafe and pub will close for the next fortnight as the 10-day remediation takes place. Other shops will remain open.

Ainslie Newsagency owner Niki Kats said she welcomed the removal of the Fluffy asbestos but believed her business would be affected.

"I think it will have an impact on us with customers not coming around the area," she said.

"Hopefully loyal customers will stick with us while they clean up the mess next door."

Ainslie IGA owner Manuel Xyrakis said it was business as usual for the supermarket.

"I'm actually sort of looking forward to the next two weeks where the carpark won't be as full with people from Edgar's," Mr Xyrakis said.

Edgar's Inn building owner Jeff Darwin has contracted Caylamax to remove the asbestos from the first-floor ceiling space of the corner building. Edgar's Inn is on the ground floor.

He emphasised he was paying for the work himself despite appeals to the ACT government for financial assistance.

Mr Darwin said the removal was expected to take 10 working days but acknowledged there was "no guarantee it won't take longer".

"There are a lot of unknowns in the whole process," he said.

"We're hoping it might be shorter."

Mr Darwin said last month that testing during the clean-up would determine whether more work was needed to get a clearance certificate so the first floor space could be tenanted.

It is the only commercial building in Canberra to be tainted by the Mr Fluffy crisis apart from a childcare centre which has since closed due to the potential risk to families.

Investigations earlier this year revealed the Fluffy asbestos had migrated into the neighbouring building, which houses a newsagency, laundromat and therapeutic massage business.

A positive sample was also returned from the next building, home to a bakery and takeaway shop.

Work Safety Commissioner Greg Jones said those shops would be cleaned probably in February next year when trading was quieter.