State's top family out of a home in March

INDIANAPOLIS -- A state panel has come up with three temporary housing options to accommodate Gov. Frank O'Bannon and first lady Judy O'Bannon while the governor's residence is renovated beginning next year.\nThe Governor's Residence Commission is seeking a place that would provide living space for the first family and enough room for the nearly 100 nonprofit groups that regularly use the Meridian Street residence on the city's near north side.\nThe panel has narrowed the list to three options:\n• The three-bedroom guest house behind the governor's current home.\n• State-owned property, such as former military officers housing at Fort Benjamin Harrison State Park on the city's northeast side.\n• A private home near the state park, known as the old general's home. The owner, property developer Virginia Basham, offered the home without cost to the state.\nThe O'Bannons could move as early as March, when renovation work is expected to begin.\nThe $900,000 renovation is intended to make the 6,633-square-foot governor's residence more accessible to the disabled. The plan involves remodeling first-floor restrooms, meeting rooms and dining areas.\nThe project could take a year or more because of the lengthy approval process and the English Tudor-style home's concrete-and-steel design, which could make renovations difficult. Private contributions are paying for the entire project.\n"Depending on how construction goes, the O'Bannons may not be able to move back into the mansion by the time (the governor) leaves office" in 2005, said Jonathan Swain, the first lady's chief of staff.\nSecurity and utility and upkeep costs are among the factors the commission is considering in picking a temporary residence, Swain said.\nThe residence commission last year discussed the possible construction of a new home, but decided against such a project as too expensive.