Batts Appear Ready To Give Up Home

Gov. Phil Batt and his wife, Jacque, appear ready to sell their home to the state for an official governor’s residence.

A committee working on plans for a governor’s mansion proposed the state purchase last month, since Batt had already bought his own home. Batt’s house is a four-bedroom, single-level stucco home in a newer Southeast Boise subdivision.

The committee had been waiting for an answer. Now it’s scheduled to meet today.Pam Ahrens, chief of the state Department of Administration, met with Jacque Batt on Tuesday.

The Batt home is assessed for tax purposes at about $260,000. Committee members said they thought the state could buy Batt’s house, then sell it and buy another if a future governor chose a different home. The state has $1 million in reserve for a governor’s mansion.

Committee members settled on the purchase idea after rejecting plans to build a new mansion or buy an official governor’s condo.

, DataTimes