But over the years, planning policies deviated from Griffin's plans as activity shifted towards satellite town centres such as Belconnen, Tuggeranong and Woden.

Civic got left behind but there is now a push to bring more life into Canberra's city centre.

"[Canberra] is a city trying to have a party in too many rooms," City Renewal Authority chief executive Malcolm Snow says.

Mr Snow said while he thought town centres served a purpose and were important, at times it was at the expense of Civic.

"We do have this legacy and it's an important legacy, one which we shouldn't squander, that we have many centres but we do only have one city centre and therefore in trying to reconcile the fact we have these multiple centres, there was some missed opportunities," he said.

But the city centre has a big hurdle to overcome and that is the coronavirus recovery. Mr Snow said businesses had done it tough in Civic and that it was time to focus on bringing more people to the city centre.

"We now understand it is important to have a city centre that is not only full of businesses but also full of people," he said.

"One of the most important things for a successful city centre is we have people living here and working here but also that we make it a really attractive part of people's lives in Canberra."

When the City Renewal Authority was established by the territory government in 2017 it was charged with the task to renew Civic, Braddon, Dickson and the Northbourne corridor.

Much of its work so far has focused on activation of public spaces. One of its projects currently under construction is a $1.6 million upgrade of City Walk. It's a landscaping project to add gardens, as well as public seating and tables.

For hole-in-the-wall coffee shop DOP Canberra, public spaces that people can enjoy is integral to their trade. They hope customers will grab a takeaway coffee and sit in the revamped City Walk.

"When there is something permanent there it just brings more people outside as well... so it's going to be great to see," Kallum Wein-Skeates of DOP Canberra said.

"It will be good to see Canberra growing in these small aspects and make the city more people friendly."

But it's not just bringing business back to Civic, it's about bringing residents, Mr Snow says.

"Having people, locals as it were, having a community here will mean not only are public spaces and the public environment being used more but it will literally seem more active," he said.

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Indeed, more residents are starting to call Civic home. Development has surged in recent years.

Construction on the 17-storey Park Avenue recently topped out at 54 metres high. It is developed by Morris Property Group and HPI Group and will have 184 apartments.

Morris Property Group construction director James Morris said the Allara Street development would welcome its first residents early next year.

He hoped it would bring new life into the city centre.

"The development will bring more people into the city, meaning more active streetscapes and additional trade for local businesses including shops, restaurants and cafes," Mr Morris said.

As Civic continues to grow, for Mr Snow he just hopes one day people will just show up in the city centre.

"If I think about really successful city centres they are places where you don't necessarily need to know or find out in advance what's going on, you just go there," he said.

"When you go, there is something exciting to do, you have multiple choices and you can combine it very easily in the way in which you want to live your life."