Garcetti, wife mulling move to official L.A. mayor’s mansion
Mayor Eric Garcetti said he and his wife, social activist Amy Wakeland, are mulling whether to move into Getty House once renovations underway at the official residence are completed.
The couple live with their toddler daughter, Maya, at their private Silver Lake residence. But Garcetti, in a brief interview at the spacious Getty House grounds, said it’s possible they’ll swap their modernist, eco-friendly abode for the 8,076-square foot English Tudor-style mansion in Windsor Square.
The three-story Getty House has a spacious backyard with an expansive lawn, Arcadian-style sunken terraces and a rose garden installed by former Mayor Tom Bradley’s wife, Ethel. The outdoor gardens would be great play space for 19-month-old Maya, the new mayor said.
But his personal style leans towards the clean, simple lines of his current solar-powered home, Garcetti said.
“We’re thinking about it,’’ he said. “But we’re still undecided.”
Getty House, operated by a nonprofit foundation, is in the midst of renovations. Patrick Brown, Getty House Foundation’s executive director, said wood rotted out by termites is being replaced, smoke alarms upgraded and oak floors resurfaced.
The last time a major renovation took place was in 1995, when former Mayor Richard Riordan’s companion, the late Nancy Daly, supervised an overhaul of the home on South Irving Boulevard just north of Wilshire Boulevard.
Brown said the foundation raises money privately to pay for the renovations. Should he choose to move in, Garcetti would be responsible for furnishing and keeping up the second and third floors, which serve as the mayor’s residence, he said. The foundation uses the first floor for special events and tours put on for school children.
The home, constructed in 1921, was deeded to the city in 1975 as a gift from the Getty Oil Company and has served as the official mayoral residence since. It’s also been the site of special events and been visited by several foreign dignitaries, including former Soviet premier Mikhail Gorbachev.
Former Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa most recently lived there.
On Monday, Garcetti used the back lawn to stage a regional mayor’s conference, drawing 63 of the 88 mayors in Los Angeles County to the property. During the event, workers were busy sanding floors inside.
Brown said he looks forward to the Garcettis moving in, if that’s what they decide.
“It’s nice to have a family here,’’ he said. “It keeps the house breathing and alive.”
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