Indiana University’s Indianapolis campus spent nearly $1.3 million on snow removal equipment and personnel, according to a Feb. 3 invoice obtained by the Indiana Daily Student.
The invoice stated that expenditures applied for events between Jan. 24 to Feb. 3. A winter storm dropped over 12 inches of snow in central Indiana, largely on Jan. 25.
The purchase, made with Terre Haute-based Effects Property Management LLC, included use of a 4x4 pickup truck valued at $270,790 and a dump truck hauling service valued at $568,100.
The original total was $1,442,699, but after a 10% discount, the total came to $1,298,429.10.
Clay Collins, the ground services manager at IU Indianapolis, said the university contracts equipment and personnel to help with snow removal operations.
Collins said he and his team’s duties include salting and plowing parking lots. The purchased services were meant to assist them in caring for over 300 acres of university grounds. IU Indianapolis’ campus is about 510 total acres.
We don't have efficient manpower or equipment,” he said. “I have a staff of 19 people.”
Spokesperson Mark Bode wrote in an email to the IDS that the purchase did not involve IU Bloomington.
"Indiana University is committed to keeping campuses safe during and after adverse weather, and that means investing the necessary resources to do so,” Bode wrote. “Additionally, IU Indianapolis also provides parking for hospital partners, so ensuring access to campus and health facilities is a top priority."
Following the heavy snow in January, the university faced criticism from students and faculty at the Bloomington campus after IU Student Government sent a mass email to students stating that IU Facilities “placed, or is in the process of placing, shovels at all residence halls to assist you all in navigating sidewalks, entry points, and your vehicles.”
Bode told the IDS at the time that the shovels were to assist students digging out their personal vehicles in addition to IU Facilities’ work clearing snow.
