Inside INdiana Business is reporting the Purdue University Board of Trustees has approved the university’s 10-year capital plan, as well as a legislative capital project request for $79 million in state funding in the 2019-2021 biennium. Additionally, the board has added five initiatives to the Purdue Moves strategic plan.
Purdue says the biennial plan will be submitted to the Indiana Commission for Higher Education and the State Budget Committee for approval. The request calls for state funding that will be leveraged with other funding for three priority projects at Purdue’s West Lafayette, Northwest and Fort Wayne campuses.
The university is seeking $60 million from the state for the first phase of the Engineering and Polytechnic Gateway project in West Lafayette. The project will include the demolition of the current Nuclear Engineering and Michael Golden Laboratories to make way for new facilities, serving the College of Engineering and Purdue Polytechnic Institute. The project will cost a total of $80 million, with construction expected to begin in 2020 and be complete in 2022-2023.
Purdue is also asking for $10 million for the completion of renovations to Helmke Library and Kettler Hall at Purdue Fort Wayne. The work will include upgraded classrooms and teaching labs, modern elevators and public areas, and replacement mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems. Crews are expected to begin work in the spring of 2020 and be complete by the end of the year.
Finally, the university is requesting $9 million from the state for a chiller plant upgrade and chilled water line at Purdue Northwest. The project includes the replacement of the existing cooling tower and an additional chiller at the Westville campus, as well as a replacement of the existing chilled water main on the Hammond campus. Construction is slated to begin in the spring of 2020 and be complete in the summer of 2021.
“Our approach to both the near-term legislative request and the 10-year plan is to renew facilities through renovation and replacement and to leverage private, public and institutional partnerships to achieve our goals,” said Michael Cline, vice president for administrative operations at Purdue. “We continue to operate under the core principles of renovate when feasible, replace existing facilities when appropriate and add new space only if necessary.”
The Board of Trustees is also adding five initiatives to the Purdue Moves strategic plan, including online learning, data science, life sciences and three-year degrees as priority initiatives. The Purdue Polytechnic High School in Indianapolis has also been added to the plan.
“The goal of Purdue Moves has always been to enhance the university’s extraordinary strengths and prepare it well for the future. These five initiatives are not new — our exceptional faculty are already making great strides in enhancing research and delivery in each of these areas,” said Purdue President Mitch Daniels. “Their addition to the Purdue Moves strategic plan formalizes our commitment to them and reflects decisions to deepen our investments in their expansion.”
You can learn more about the added initiatives by clicking here.