Gov. Tina Kotek looking to rent a home this summer

Oregon

Gov. Tina Kotek

is looking to hit the short-term rental market this summer while the governor’s mansion undergoes extensive renovations.

Kotek and her wife are planning to temporarily move out of their official residence,

Mahonia Hall

, for project work expected to take multiple months, according to a letter from an agency executive to the state’s ethics commission.

But Kotek’s office would not confirm the potential move or say whether Kotek and her wife might stay in the Salem area or move closer to Portland, where the couple owned a home before selling it upon moving to the state capital in 2023.

In a May 9 letter to the Oregon ethics commission, Department of Administrative Services executive Shannon Ryan asked on behalf of the governor whether it would be appropriate for the state to cover the costs for Kotek and her wife to live in a short-term rental for about three months this summer.

At the time, Ryan said the governor was looking at rental homes in the Portland area with expected monthly costs between $3,000 and $5,000. Kotek and her wife needed to temporarily relocate ahead of major work at Mahonia Hall, she wrote.

“These projects will inhibit the habitability of the home due to the hazardous and invasive nature of the work,” Ryan wrote. “As such, (the state) needs to provide temporary housing for the First Family as Mahonia Hall is their sole residence.”

Elisabeth Shepard, the governor’s public affairs and communications director, would not confirm Wednesday where Kotek and her wife will seek temporary living accommodations during any remodeling, citing security concerns. Shepard said they would seek “the lowest possible cost available” and directed further questions to Oregon State Police, which manages the governor’s security team.

“Under the guidance of the Oregon State Police (OSP) and general operational security practices, the Governor’s Office does not provide advance notice of the First Family’s location,” Shepard said in an email.

On Tuesday, ethics commission executive director Susan Myers responded to Ryan and said the state paying for Kotek’s temporary relocation would not be an ethics violation. Myers said that’s because the department of administrative services is authorized to pay for Kotek’s “executive residence,” meaning the payments would be considered part of her compensation package.

Mahonia Hall serves both as a home and a place of politics and government business. The state last month hired Amy Williams to serve as executive residence director for Mahonia Hall,

according to

longtime Oregon journalist Dick Hughes.

Kotek and her wife have hosted multiple receptions at the Salem residence, including a recent reception on May 14 for the Campaign for Equal Justice, a group that focuses on making legal services accessible to more Oregonians.

Oregon’s two most recent governors before Kotek, Kate Brown and John Kitzhaber, both continued owning homes in Portland while in office.

— Carlos Fuentes covers state politics and government. Reach him at 503-221-5386 or

cfuentes@oregonian.com

.

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