Development of the Campus - The 1990s

The 1990s were a period of great growth for the University, however this presented problems, with the University’s facilities not having kept pace with the growth in student and staff numbers. The Building & Grounds Division took over responsibility for campus master planning and set about developing a series of plans, studies and reports to guide the planning process. A new Development Policy Plan was released in 1992 which provided a framework for the site for the next ten years. The focus was on maintaining existing quadrangular buildings that could be flexibly extended and ensuring that all the campus precincts were well-connected for pedestrians through pathways and cycleways.  

The mid-1990s also saw the release of other fundamental planning documents, including the Strategic Landscape Master Plan (1994), Heritage Study (1995) and Architectural Heritage Study (1995).    

A key addition to the ANU in 1991 was the Canberra Institute of the Arts. Its amalgamation with the ANU resulted in its building complex becoming amalgamated into the campus and renamed the ANU School of Art and Design. 

A change to the structure of university funding in 1994 resulted in the ability for the ANU to have much greater control over its capital works program and this change fueled the development of the Baldessin Precinct and the Research School of Information Sciences and Engineering (RSISE). Some of the key developments in the 1990s included the Manning Clark Lecture Theatre Centre (1993) and Sir Roland Wilson Building (1999).  

References

Banks, J & Gaardboe, M 1996, Buildings and Landscapes: the Australian National University, Canberra, ANU Division of Facilities and Services and Public Affairs, Canberra. 

Dexter, D 1991, The ANU Campus, Australian National University Press, Canberra.