NY Governor David Paterson's Home For Now

New York Governor David Paterson of course lives in the Executive Mansion in Albany.  We're not sure for how much longer though.  The unpopular governor and his own "First Lady Michelle" have been quite vocal regarding their disappointment that President Obama has asked him not to seek re-election.  They naively think that what the President did was unthinkable. 

What they fail to realize however is that it was unthinkable to disclose such communications and, even worse, to fail to honor the President's request.  Unfortunately, this is entirely consistent with the way Paterson blunders through his way in office. 

But what we wanna know is, have they made any blunders with respect to the Executive Manse?

In December 2008, the New York Times interviewed New York's First Lady about moving from a 2-BR apartment in Harlem to the 40-room Victorian governor's mansion (above).  At 29,000 sq. ft. and sitting on three and a half acres, the Patersons certainly had plenty of space to work with.

The previous first lady, former governor Eliot Spitzer's wife Silda, started an eco-friendly makeover of the mansion.  According to the Times article, Michelle has continued that effort "using organic cleaners, serving mostly locally grown foods and installing energy-efficient appliances and solar panels on outbuildings."

The Patersons also brought furniture from their other home (a 2,600 sq. ft. Colonial in a nearby town) to furnish their master bedroom and third-floor family room.  Alas, no photos were taken of these rooms, so we don't get to see any of their personality or taste.

They also scattered a few family photos around the house, like in the drawing room below, but those are barely noticeable: 

The article suggests that, in light of the state's difficult economic times, the Patersons haven't done much in the way of decorating (obviously!) and likely won't do anything significant.   So the mansion remains a stodgy old "gloomy pile," as it was once described by Teddy Roosevelt.

But at least this shows prudence on the part of this governor.  Maybe he'll get to keep his job after all!

To read the NY Times article and see a slideshow with lots of photos of the mansion, go here.

Top photo by Goldfield for the NY Daily News.
Executive Mansion photos by Nathaniel Brooks for the NY Times.