LOS ANGELES : Mayor’s Residence to Be Remodeled for Official Use

The official residence of the mayor is getting a make-over starting in September.

The 20-room G.F. Getty House in the city’s stately Hancock Park area will be renovated over a seven-month period so that it can be used for city-related entertaining, receptions and formal functions.

“As part of our efforts to present our city as the renowned and respected place that we know it to be, it is imperative for us to have a place to meet, greet and entertain leaders from around our city, state and nation,” Mayor Richard Riordan said in a statement.

The English Tudor home, which sits on a one-acre lot, was built in 1921 and donated to the city in 1976. The next year it was dedicated as the official mayoral residence.

Former Mayor Tom Bradley lived in the home, but Riordan chose to remain at his Brentwood house.

Among the renovations will be to sandblast the creamy white facade to expose its original brick color, remodel the kitchen and build a bathroom on the first floor, said Susi McConaghy, executive director of the nonprofit Getty House Restoration Foundation.

Work will begin Sept. 12 and be done through private funds, donations and free services from designers, architects and landscape artists, McConaghy said.

The renovation is scheduled to be completed by April 1.

McConaghy is overseeing the renovation along with Nancy Daly, the project chairwoman and Riordan’s girlfriend.