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Harris to delay move into vice president’s home

Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and husband Doug Emhoff.Jonathan Newton/The Washington Post

WASHINGTON - Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband Doug Emoff will not be immediately moving into the Naval Observatory while work is done on the 128-year-old home, according to two people familiar with the arrangement.

They are intending to move to a temporary residence while the repairs, which involve liners in the chimney and other maintenance, according to a person close to Harris, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they did not have authorization to speak publicly.

Harris, who was elected to the US Senate in 2016, has a two-bedroom condominium where she will stay during the construction, according to one of the people familiar with the arrangement.

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It was unclear on Wednesday night how extensive the work on the Naval Observatory home would be, how long it would take, and how much it would cost. News of the arrangement was first reported by CBS News.

Vice presidents and their families for most of American history lived in their own homes, but as housing costs escalated, Congress in 1974 agreed to refurbish the house for the vice president to utilize.

Walter Mondale was the first vice president to live in the home, and it has since housed six vice presidents, including, during his eight years as vice president, President Biden.

At times over the years, additions have been made. George H.W. Bush added a horseshoe pit, while Dan Quayle installed a swimming pool. In 2017, the Mike Pence and his wife, Karen, placed a beehive at the residence.