Bentleys decide where they will reside in Montgomery

Gov. Robert Bentley said Tuesday that he and his wife will live in the historic governor's mansion on Perry Street.

Bentley said his wife, Dianne, will be looking at the mansion today. He said the executive mansion would likely need some fresh paint and some touch-ups, but that he expected them to move in late this week or early next week.

There had been some discussion early on about whether the Bentleys would move into the mansion near downtown used by governors for decades or whether they would move into the estate of Winton "Red" Blount that was given to the state during the Riley administration.

Bentley also said they would keep the mansion open for tours and that there would be work, funded by private dollars, to restore the downstairs portion of the mansion to look more like it did at the time it was built in the early 1900s.

Bentley said they wanted people to visit the mansion.

Patsy Riley, the wife of Bentley's predecessor, worked hard to restore the downstairs portion of the mansion that people see when they visit.

-- posted by Sebastian Kitchen