Chief Minister Andrew Barr says a developer will effectively become the "bank for the CSIRO" when it signs up to build housing on a large swathe of the agency's land in north-west Canberra.
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The CSIRO is set to bring in developers to build homes on a 701-hectare block it owns between Belconnen and Gungahlin, known as the Ginninderra Field Station.
It began considering what to do with the land in 2011, after a review found it was "significantly underutilised for research", and is currently evaluating expressions of interest from developers after federal authorities rezoned the land in May.
Tender documents associated with the proposal show any developer who enters a partnership with the CSIRO would need to pay the organisation $15 million by July next year, the same amount by July 2018, $29 million by July 2019, and $47 million by July 2020.
The actual development isn't scheduled to begin until at least 2019, and those payments are required to be made without relying on any funding derived from the development.
"The CSIRO payments are completely separate to be made to CSIRO for its own requirements and will not be allocated to the project in any way," the CSIRO's tender documents state.
On Wednesday, Chief Minister Andrew Barr was again asked about his view of the plans during an appearance before the Legislative Assembly's estimates committee.
Mr Barr said the development was aimed at "propping up" the CSIRO's finances.
"Let's not forget what is driving this, and that is that the Commonwealth government is not properly funding the CSIRO," he said.
"Any joint venture partner will be required to provide $100 million up front to the CSIRO before they would get any return. So they'd effectively be the bank for the CSIRO.
"That's what's behind this, nothing more and nothing less than the propping up the financial position of the CSIRO."
The CSIRO said in a statement that the main drivers of its plan were based on a 2011 internal review finding the land was underutilised, and a request to the federal government in 2012 to "pursue alternative use options for the property".
The agency said it was bringing together its national research expertise to "create a new benchmark in sustainable urban development at the property".
"CSIRO is not selling its Ginninderra property but rather planning to work with a joint venture partner to deliver a precinct of enduring value for local residents, the broader community, industry and the environment," its statement read.
"As with other joint venture partnerships, the development partner and CSIRO will both bring assets to this partnership."
It's the second time this week that Mr Barr has taken aim at the plan.
On Monday, he warned he expected a significant backlash from the community, and said he would not have rezoned the land to allow urban development.
Meanwhile, the CSIRO has assured that genetically modified crops currently being trialled at a small, two-hectare portion of the site will be closely monitored and planned for in the lead up to the development.
Those genetically modified crops have been grown under strict oversight by the federal regulator, and were deemed as a negligible risk to animals and people.
The Office of the Gene Technology Regulator requires the CSIRO to ensure there is no persistence or spread of the genetically modified material during or after the trial.
That requires a 24-month monitoring regime after the crop is finished, which, according to documents with the regulator, is in mid-2017.
The CSIRO said in a statement that the earliest it envisioned development occurring was 2019.
"As standard practice, CSIRO will implement the monitoring process as specified in our licence with [Office of the Gene Technology Regulator]," it said.
"The team responsible for future planning of the Ginninderra site is fully aware of the minimum 24 month monitoring period for this area of the site and planning will proceed in accordance with that understanding.
"On our current timelines, the earliest that development could commence on any part of the Ginninderra property is in 2019."
