FARGO - Cost overruns at the presidents' homes at UND and North Dakota State University likely will be the subject of an audit by the state.
The State Board of Higher Education's finance committee today asked the full board to talk to the state auditor's office about that, and staff indicated that office anticipates the request.
One question the auditors could look into is what rationale the two universities used to separate landscaping and site preparation costs from the construction of the homes themselves. The state board had limited costs to about $900,000, and the universities decided that applied only to the home. Site preparation and landscaping added significantly to the cost overruns.
UND spent $1.1 million on its president's home and NDSU spent $1.9 million, the board determined, which doesn't include furnishings, which the board had allowed to be separated from construction cost.
In its report on the cost overruns, board staff had said the universities said they had been allowed to separate the costs in the past, but had not provided any proof.
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Asked if the finance committee would seek out that proof, Chairman Jon Backes said, "I'm quite certain the state auditor's office will look into that issue." The committee is not intended to be "an inquiry committee," he said. It's only there to give recommendations to the board, he said.
The committee also recommended a variety of changes to board policy that would require full disclosure of costs, including landscaping and site preparation for future projects.
NDSU President Joseph Chapman, who recently resigned over this and other matters, was the one requesting the audit.
He said he felt there were too many "rumors, innuendo" out there and it's important to step back and let a third party look into the matter to "find out what really went wrong."
The NDSU Development Foundation, replying to questions from the committee, had said Chapman and his wife, Gale, pressured the group to speed up the construction of the president's home, which contributed to the cost overrun.
Chapman said today that he didn't think that was the case. "I don't feel we put pressure on anybody," he said. "It's true we would've wanted to be in the house sooner," he said, adding that the timeline for the UND president's home was shorter.
The Herald will update this story later in the day. Please check back at www.GrandForksHerald.com .
