Trustees approve Indianapolis real estate purchase to serve as Student Center

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The Purdue University Board of Trustees on Friday (Aug. 8) approved the purchase of real estate at 518-520 Indiana Ave. in Indianapolis from the Purdue Research Foundation to serve as a Student Center for the Indianapolis location.

The two-story, 25,000-square-foot facility will open for the fall semester and operate similarly to the Krach Leadership Center in West Lafayette. Features include:

• Student study areas, social spaces and a mini-market on the first floor
• Writing lab, library space, disability resource center and student success support services on the second floor

“We recognize the importance of student gathering space outside of residences and classroom buildings, and the new Student Center will provide additional student study and collaboration spaces while co-locating student-facing services,” said Michael B. Cline, senior vice president for administrative operations at Purdue and chief operating officer for the Indianapolis location starting in January 2026.

“Besides offering additional gathering space for our students in Indianapolis, this new facility creates a unique opportunity for connection, both socially and through study,” said David Umulis, Purdue senior vice provost for Indianapolis. “The Student Center is another essential piece of the continuing growth of our expansion in the capital city.”

The acquisition aligns with the Indianapolis Campus Master Plan, which was introduced in June and provides a 50-year framework for development. The purchase price is $4.5 million and will be funded by Operating Funds — Reserves.

In other action, trustees gave approval to plan, finance, construct and award construction contracts for the following projects at the West Lafayette location:

• Wade Utility Plant equipment improvements — to purify steam condensate that is used in the production of electricity and distribution of steam for campus use (expected completion in June 2027)
• Elliott Hall of Music ceiling tile replacement — to remove approximately 90-year-old ceiling tiles and replace them with new tiles that will have acoustic qualities equal to or better than the original ones (expected completion in January 2027)
• Chiller cleaning system — to install a new system that cleans internal parts of the chillers at the Wade Utility Plant and the Northwest Chiller Plant (expected completion in May 2027)

Additionally, trustees gave approval to plan, finance, construct and award construction contracts for the following repair and rehabilitation projects at the West Lafayette location:

• Stanley Coulter Hall mechanical project — to install new mechanical equipment that provides heating and cooling to the southwest portion of Stanley Coulter Hall on the ground, first and second floors (expected completion in November 2027)
• Hicks Undergraduate Library masonry renovation — to repair deteriorating masonry (expected completion in August 2026)
• Young Hall roof replacement — to remove and replace most of the approximately 20-year-old existing roof (expected completion in October 2026)

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a public research university leading with excellence at scale. Ranked among top 10 public universities in the United States, Purdue discovers, disseminates and deploys knowledge with a quality and at a scale second to none. More than 107,000 students study at Purdue across multiple campuses, locations and modalities, including more than 58,000 at our main campus in West Lafayette and Indianapolis. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue’s main campus has frozen tuition 14 years in a row. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap — including its comprehensive urban expansion, the Mitch Daniels School of Business, Purdue Computes and the One Health initiative — at https://www.purdue.edu/president/strategic-initiatives.