Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels says he didn’t authorize a major renovation of the Purdue University president’s office and has asked that any work not completed be stopped.
Daniels issued a statement about the renovation after the West LaFayette Journal and Courier reported that the university is spending $380,000 to fix up the office and replace outdated computers and video equipment. The paper reports that the project was all but completed last week.
Daniels, who will become Purdue’s 12th president in January, says he wasn’t involved in the decision to perform the work and would not have requested that it be done.
He says the office work is part of a long-planned larger project to renovate Hovde Hall, which houses the presidential suite and the registrar’s office.
Here is Daniels' entire statement:
A number of media outlets have published a story about renovations occurring in Hovde Hall, which houses the president’s office at Purdue University. Governor Daniels issued this statement about the work:
“It is important to me that friends of Purdue and all citizens of Indiana know the following with regard to the renovation of the Purdue University president’s office: I knew nothing about it and was no part of the decision to perform this work. If I had been asked in advance, I would have requested that the work not be done. The renovation had nothing to do with my becoming president, but was part of a longstanding plan to renovate parts of Hovde Hall after many decades.
“I have asked that any work not already complete be canceled. Nothing about my service in business or public life suggests that I would initiate or condone a dollar of excessive or unnecessary spending on my account.”
