LANSING - The official residence of the Michigan’s governor — unoccupied since Gov. Rick Snyder took office in 2011 — will soon be lived in once again.
Democratic Gov.-elect Gretchen Whitmer and her family plan to move into the 8,700-square-foot Lansing ranch-style home — sometimes referred to as the “governor’s mansion,” in January, spokesman Zack Pohl said Thursday.
The home “already has the necessary equipment and configurations for security purposes,” Pohl said.
In front of the governor's residence in Lansing on Wednesday, June 8, 2005. (Photo: Regina H. Boone/Detroit Free Press)
Whitmer and her husband, Lansing dentist Marc Mallory, have two daughters from her previous marriage and three sons from his previous marriage. Mallory's sons are grown. The couple and Whitmer's two daughters, Sherry and Sydney, who will be moving to the official residence, now live in East Lansing.
Snyder, a Republican, was the first governor not to live in the house since it was donated to the state in 1969 by Howard and Letha Sober.
Michigan Governor elect Gretchen Whitmer, flanked by her two daughters, celebrates her victory during the watch party held at the Sound Board in the MotorCity Casino in Detroit Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2018. (Photo: Mandi Wright, Detroit Free Press)
Instead, the house was used during the Snyder administration for departmental meetings, official receptions and parties; and a spot for private businesses and outside groups, including the Michigan Republican Party, to hold meetings, luncheon, dinners and fundraisers.
Snyder required security additions first at his home in Superior Township in suburban Ann Arbor and later at a condo in downtown Ann Arbor, after he and his wife Sue moved there when their children moved out and the couple became empty nesters.
The Foundation to Reinvent Michigan, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, maintains and operates the governor's residences in Lansing and on Mackinac Island.
The Lansing residence underwent a $2.5-million renovation, which included the addition of living space, in 2004.
Pohl said he didn't know if any refurbishments will be needed before Whitmer and her family move in.
Contact Paul Egan: 517-372-8660 or pegan@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @paulegan4.