Vice President Kamala Harris is finally inside her official residence! Here’s what it’s like, and the renovations it’s gone through.
According to the reports, Vice President Kamala Harris finally lives in her official house on the grounds of the U.S. Naval Observatory. Harris will be the ninth vice president to live here, following a series of seconds-in-command that began with Walter Mondale in the late ’70s. According to a loose belief, each inmate gets to oversee the home’s amendments and make suggestions for the 128-year-old, Queen Anne–style mansion.
Why the long wait, given she was sworn in three months ago? It’s because her six-bedroom, 9,000-square-foot home at 1 Beacon Circle was experiencing some great renovations both inside and outside that took all this time to complete. A refresh is perfectly normal after years of wear and tear from former vice presidents, their families, guests, and even pets.
New HVAC system, chimney liners, and flooring
According to a report in the New York Times, a new HVAC arrangement was established for Harris and Emhoff, along with updated chimney liners and newly refinished flooring. It’s not sexy work to be sure, but since parts of Washington, DC, were built atop a swamp, you can’t live luxuriously in this city without solid air conditioning.
A new color palette and art
New rugs and drapes are likely standard fittings, and personal paint decisions are often taken into account. And, just as in the Oval Office, artwork to adorn the rooms can be rented from the National Gallery of Art. (The Bidens chose a blue hue from their Delaware home for the dining room walls.)
Bees and hoops are included
The Pence family wanted a nearby exercise facility, so the Indiana natives installed a basketball court plastered with the Hoosiers team logo. (Harris has reportedly said the bees are “absolutely” staying on.) But they also put in what might be the strangest addition to an official Washington residence.
