Talk about a fixer-upper.
The wiring, plumbing, air conditioning and windows need to be repaired or replaced. The house could have foundation and mold problems due to water leaks. The exterior wood needs to be repainted.
Clearly, Gov.-elect Bill Ritter has got some work to do before he moves into the big house at 400 E. Eighth Ave.
A memo prepared for Ritter by the outgoing administration estimates repairs needed on the Governor’s Mansion at about $5 million.
The home’s condition of disrepair poses a delicate political and family dilemma for Ritter while he focuses on forming a new team to run state government.
For Ritter’s children who still live at home, the governor-elect is still just dad. Fifteen-year-old son Sam and 13-year-old daughter Tally are lobbying to relocate from the current Ritter home in the Platt Park neighborhood.
“It was so cute,” said Jeannie Ritter, the soon-to-be first lady. “They were really excited about moving into (the Governor’s Mansion.) We were like, ‘We’ll talk about it. We still have to figure some things out.’
“They made it really clear: ‘That’s when it will feel real to us. Right now, you might be the governor-elect, but to us, you’re just gone a lot more.’ ”
But Owens’ team is recommending that the repairs get made before the Ritters move in, which may delay the family’s relocation plans until early 2008.
“The transition between executive administrations after the November 2006 elections may provide an opportunity to vacate the residence and most efficiently perform necessary work,” the memo says.
Owens kept his primary residence in Arapahoe County during his term in office.
To improve the mansion, the governor-elect must decide whether to ask lawmakers for the funding or solicit private donations to cover the costs.
“I think it is fair to say that we would not go to the legislature seeking that much money for the mansion,” said Evan Dreyer, spokesman for Ritter.
“The mansion is an important historical facility that needs to be maintained and preserved, but that seems like a lot of money,” he said.
Especially at a time when lawmakers are trying to prove to voters that the extra money raised by Referendum C’s passage last year will be used on roads, health care and education programs.
Another option is to seek private funding – similar to the way the Owens administration used about $2.5 million to renovate the carriage house, a greenhouse and a garage at the governor’s residence.
The state has spent another $700,000 – most of it in federal funds – to make improvements to the public areas of the mansion itself.
Staff writer Colleen O’Connor contributed to this report.
Staff writer Mark P. Couch can be reached at 303-954-1794 or mcouch@denverpost.com.
