For $3 million, governor will have mansion again
BOISE – The 1980s house donated by potato baron J.R. Simplot for use as Idaho’s governor’s mansion is worth 25 percent less than originally estimated and will cost more than $3 million to turn into a 12,000-square-foot residence for the state’s top executive.
The governor’s housing committee voted Friday to sign title papers and expects to close on the house Nov. 1, about 10 months after billionaire Simplot announced he was giving the hilltop home to the state on Dec. 21, 2004.
The 7,400-square-foot Simplot house will be expanded by about 4,600 square feet, adding 12-foot ceilings, four to five guest bedrooms, garages, a game room, a grand hall with 12-foot ceilings and dining space for 150 people – and a separate entrance for children of future governors who might be wary of using the front door. The house will also feature a terrace overlooking the city,
The expansion will cost at least 50 percent more than the $2 million renovation figure previously released to the public, said Ralph Kreizenbeck of Kreizenbeck Constructors, which is overseeing the project.
The work is to be paid for with proceeds from a fund-raising campaign – not taxpayer money.
The house, according to an appraiser, is worth $2.1 million – less than the $2.8 million figure published a year ago.
Simplot, America’s 93rd-richest man with $2.5 billion, according to Forbes magazine, gave the house to Idaho because the state hasn’t had a governor’s mansion since 1987. The former residence was sold that year because it had fallen into disrepair and past governors refused to live in it.
Even with the lower appraisal and extensive remodeling, committee members said they thought Idaho was getting a good deal.
“I think this is a remarkable financial arrangement for the state,” said Sen. Mike Burkett, D-Boise. “It’s a great opportunity for the state to receive this property.”
In what sounded a bit like a script for an Idaho episode of “Extreme Makeover,” Glancey described the planned changes, which are to be completed by Nov. 1, 2006.
His drawings call for the main floor to be lowered and its ceilings to be raised to create the 1,300-square-foot “Grand Hall.” That’ll be flanked by a new guest suite, a family room and governor’s library. There will be four public bathrooms for guests attending functions at the house.
Guests will be dropped off beneath a “porte cochere” – a roofed entrance large enough for a carriage or car to pass through.
“We’re looking at a facility we hope (will last) 100 years, 200 years,” Glancey said. “What we’ve done is try to maintain as much of the existing character of the home as possible.”
So far, some $201,000 has been raised to cover renovations.
William Glynn, president of Intermountain Gas Co. and a leader of the fund-raising effort, couldn’t immediately be reached for comment on his strategy to raise another $2.8 million – or more, should construction costs exceed original estimates.
“There is right now a spike in this market,” Kreizenbeck said of recent projects in southern Idaho that cost 20 percent to 30 percent above expectations.
The property will cost the state more than $3,800 monthly to maintain, including irrigation charges for the vast lawn. That’ll rise to $5,400 once residents move in. The money will come from the same $1.5 million fund that currently provides Kempthorne with a $4,500 monthly housing allowance he uses to defray costs of living in the townhouse he owns.