The state Department has also set aside more than $ 100,000 for alternative accommodation in Sondland in September and October while work is being done.

Trump envoy to testify that no quid pro quo came from trump

Sondland, a hotel developer and major trump fundraiser who had no diplomatic background before he was confirmed by the Senate in June 2018, played a key role in the administrations ‘ efforts to pressure the Ukrainian government to investigate trump’s political rivals, according to text messages and testimony from current and former officials.

He is due to be deposed by impeachment investigators on Thursday and plans to say that a text message he sent on September 9 to a senior us diplomat in Kiev denying any quid pro quo with Ukraine, which desperately needed US military assistance and diplomatic support, was passed to him directly by trump, according to a person familiar with his testimony.

The renovations at the residence of EU ambassadors, which include $ 33,000 for handmade furniture from Italy, appeared driven by Sondlands generous tastes rather than practical needs, people familiar with the matter said. Like others, they spoke on condition of anonymity, citing situations of sensitivity and a desire to be candid with their ideas.

The state Department defended the renovations, saying they were part of a regular 17 – year cycle of reviewing and refreshing d cor furniture and interior in Executive residences. The repairs were funded in April, following sondlands ‘ confirmation, a spokesman said. Other minor repairs currently underway were reviewed and approved by U.S. mission officials and funded in fiscal year 2019, which began in October, after Sondland was approved.

Two former U.S. official said that Sandland in awe of the fact that he is the American Ambassador in Brussels.

He’s addicted, one former official said. The way you are treated as a senior US official, There’s nothing like that in terms of adrenaline and ego boost.

Some of Sondlands ‘ colleagues said that, upon arrival in Brussels, he quickly became disillusioned with his accommodation and, unsuccessfully arguing to move into a new residence, began to offer renovations.

The residence, located in a leafy residential area in the Uccle section of Brussels, is not the pinnacle of Brussels luxury standards, people who spent time there said. But he was well suited to his assignment as Ambassador and hosting work Lunches and social Affairs. Whitlock Hall, the residence of the U.S. Ambassador to Belgium, where American diplomats usually hold major events.

A person who spoke to Sondland about the upgrade said the residence was deteriorated and almost unfit for representative purposes.

But others disputed that claim.

Bull – – – -, said one person with extensive knowledge of the residence before Sondland arrived. The house was in excellent condition.

The former U.S. official also called the allegations of unfitness of the houses false.

The problem with the “residence” is mainly the location, very far from the center and completely inaccessible by public transportation, the former official said. But the physical condition is fine.

During the Obama administration, the house was used two to three nights a week for entertainment. The gardens were superb and it had a fantastic pool. The facility is one of the most luxurious of any in Brussels, one person said.

Guests were often invited to dinner or receptions. Sondlands predecessor, Obama appointee Anthony Gardner, held annual July 4 parties there as a brass band played and European bureaucrats, diplomats, business leaders, academics and journalists chomped on hot dogs.

Sondland described himself as a disruptive diplomat. In public appearances and in private meetings, he often repeated the rhetoric of his boss, trump, another hotel developer. Sondland once told American business representatives that unlike his predecessors, he would get s – – – done, according to people who attended. He called the EU out of touch and accused it of disrupting trade talks with the trump administration.

Subversive diplomat Gordon Sondland, a key figure in the trump impeachment furore, has long been a coveted Ambassador

Purchase records show that in the years before the arrival of the Sondlands, the biggest spending was on the regular maintenance of the pool, which costs between $ 15,000 and $ 20,000 a year, as well as for General maintenance and landscaping, with the exception of the $ 122,000 purchase in 2015 for refrigeration, apparently for catering kitchen homes.

Under Sondland, however, the State Department spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on furniture, fabrics and what is described in documents as a family kitchen, costing just under $ 223,000.

This project is different from another for a professional kitchen, costing about $ 209,000, records show. Prior to Sondlands ‘ arrival, the house had no personal kitchen, and ambassadors and their families would prepare their personal meals in a professional kitchen, according to people familiar with the residence.

The cost of a family kitchen was in line with luxury homes in Brussels, said Jorge Almada, a Brussels-based designer who has experience working on luxury projects.

His, as in “new York city,” Almada said in an email. This price is within reasonable if its all decked with appliances. It’s always wood, which is particularly expensive.

Part of the work in the residence seemed to be for the comfort of the occupant, not to make the house suitable for guests.

Records show $ 82000 was spent to renovate the bathroom labeled backside office. Renovation of the lobby toilet, more public space, cost about $ 54,000, records show.

Sondland has also been trying to modernize the offices where he and staff from the U.S. mission to the EU work, former officials and colleagues said.

He had a strange obsession with setting up a diner after he visited Uber’s Bay Area headquarters, a former U.S. official said, referring to the ride-hailing service headquartered in San Francisco.

He often tried to use his own money for repairs that were not authorized, the former official said.

He has held separate meetings on these issues with administrative services and procurement, another former official said.

Sondland would not be the first wealthy donor – turned-diplomat to try to decorate his home.

It’s unusual but not unheard of for ambassadors to pay for repairs with their own money, said Ron Neumann, President of the American Academy of diplomacy.

The lifestyles of wealthy donors can sometimes create a shock when spending becomes public.

If you’re a multimillionaire used to doing these things for your own place, you might not look at price tags the same way, Neumann said.

While work on the residence continues, the former official said, Sondland is staying at the hotel. The person described the hotel as not the nicest in Brussels but one of the nicer.

Harris and Hudson reported from Washington. Aaron C. Davis contributed to this report.

Trump envoy to testify that no quid pro quo came from trump

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