The financially troubled Australian National University has put a prime piece of land it owns in Weston on the market.
Block 7 Section 96 sits between Heysen and Unwin streets, with Village Building Company’s approved but yet-to-be-started Fetherstone residential development to the west and Fetherstone Gardens to the east.
The 13,130 sqm vacant block is being marketed as an exceptional development opportunity and a rare chance to acquire such a big parcel of land in the established suburb.
The elevated block is zoned residential RZ4 medium density and “offers immense potential”, with access from both Heysen and Unwin streets and westerly views to the Brindabellas.
Weston is just 3 km from Woden, 10 km from the CBD, and 11 km from Tuggeranong.
The land is close to two schools – Orana Steiner School and the Canberra Islamic School, both on Unwin Street – while Cooleman Court is a few minutes’ drive away.
An ANU spokesperson confirmed that the university owned the land, and it was being offered for sale via an expression of interest process.
The ANU is endeavouring to rein in a $200 million budget deficit by cutting its recurrent costs by $250 million, which could result in about 600 positions being lost, but a large-scale land sell-off was not envisaged.
“While all options are being explored in the university’s efforts to reduce its budget deficit, we are not planning on selling further assets at this time,” the spokesperson said.
Village’s adjacent Fetherston development was approved in May last year, but the $140 million residential project has yet to break ground.
It will add 337 dwellings to the area, comprising 26 buildings, including a mix of three-storey apartments and two-to-three-storey townhouses with basement and under-croft parking spread over the site and set amid parks, pathways, and treed driveways.
Village said at the time the site would be developed in four stages and take three years to complete. It had intended to start construction early this year.
A Village spokesperson said that it was now anticipated that construction and marketing of the Fetherston site would commence during 2025. No decision had been made in relation to the ANU land.
Civium is handling the sale of the ANU block, and expressions of interest close on Monday, 25 November.