Description
On 3 February 1966 the Acting Bursar, E. H. Davis, wrote to the District Surveyor of the Land Board Office, Hay, noting that as in the near future a substantial part of the town common at Hay will become available for other use...I should be grateful if you would consider making this land available to the university on a permissive occupancy basis. On 13 April 1966 the Under Secretary for the Department of Lands, W. J. Broadfoot, wrote to Mr Davis advising that it has been approved that an area of about 1800 acres be revoked from Hay Common. Following revocation, a Permissive Occupancy will be offered to the university over the area, for research purposes associated with Wool Technology. In the Government Gazette published on 21 October 1966, it was notified that these 1800 acres had been revoked from Hay Common. On 16 December 1966 a Permissive Occupancy (66/12) for this site was offered to the university for the purposes of a research station to be effective from 1 January 1967. Hay Field Station was administratively placed under the School of Wool & Pastoral Sciences (file 00014498). On 12 May 1970 the Officer-in-Charge of the Hay Land Board Office wrote to Mr Davis to indicate that the residue of Hay Common has recently been revoked and the university's permissive occupancy is being amended to include the area. On 29 May 1970, Mr Davis accepted this offer on behalf of the university. On the same date Mr Davis also wrote to the Under Secretary for the Department of Lands, Mr R. Sinclair, suggesting that it seems appropriate that the [Hay] land should be held on a more secure basis than a Permissive Occupancy which is, in effect, a tenancy at will. On 14 August 1970, Mr Sinclair responded to this request indicating that there are no objections to the university gaining a more secure title and following completion of the investigations into the needs of the local vegetable farmers action will be taken towards dedication of an area for 'experimental farm' (file 00370941). The Government Gazette No. 90 of 6 July 1973 announced that this plan to dedicate the area as an experimental farm had been approved (file 00370942). On 16 September 1991 the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Academic Affairs), Professor A. J. Wicken, wrote to Professor Euan Roberts indicating that in future Hay, Deniliquin, Wellington and Burraduc (until sold) Field Stations should be looked after by a Management Committee in much the same way as Fowlers Gap Field Station. The first Chair of the Committee was Professor Ross Griffiths, as head of the School of Fibre Science & Technology (file 911523). On 2 December 1996 Council resolved to later approve timetable and administrative arrangements for the disestablishment of the School of Fibre Science & Technology (resolution CL96/88/4). At Council's 3 February 1997 meeting, it was resolved that this would be effective 1 July 1997 (resolution CL97/5). As a result, on 1 December 1997 Council passed a resolution to approve the disposal of the Hay Field Station and agree that, following consent from the Minister of Education, arrangements will be made for the sale of the Hay property (resolution CL97/88). However, on 30 April 1999 the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Professor Bruce Dowton, wrote to the Executive Director of the Division of Business & Finance, Chris Lidbury, proposing that on 15 May 1999 operational and financial responsibility for the Hay Field Station [be transferred] from the Chancellery to the Faculty of Medicine. This was agreed to by Chris Lidbury on 5 May 1999 and so the station remained with the university (file 971170). On 19 July 2004 the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research), Professor Elspeth McLachlan, wrote a proposal to the Budget Advisory Group (BAG) recommending that the Hay Field Station be retained to provide a secure supply of healthy sheep for research at UNSW [and] that the Hay Field Station become part of the Biological Resources Centre with an effective date retrospective to 1 January 2003 (file 2004/1850). Although these recommendations were initially not accepted by BAG at its 18 August 2004 meeting, at the following BAG meeting on 20 October 2004 it was determined that UNSW had an obligation to continue activities at Hay Field Station in the meantime (file 2005/0446). It is unclear as to whether this also resulted in the approval of the move of the station to the Biological Resources Centre. Controlling Organisation: UNSW - 01/01/1967-
