Oh, what it must be like to marry a Prince.
Since the year before their marriage, Prince William and Kate Middleton have had their primary residence in Angelsey, Wales – near William’s RAF base. However, leading up to the marriage it was announced that their London base would be Kenginston Palace.
Since the wedding, the pair have been residing in Nottingham Cottage, on the palace grounds. It’s a small, separate structure that boasts only two bedrooms and one bathroom. However, a few months after the wedding it was announced that Apartment 1A in Kensington Palace, which formerly housed The Queen’s younger sister Princess Margaret, would be renovated for The Duke and Duchess.
Since Princess Margaret’s death in 2002 Apartmetn 1A has been used as office space. However, prior to the offices being usable $680,000 of taxpayer funds was sunk into the place to rid it of asbestos.
Now that Their Royal Highnesses are moving in, another $1,020,000 of public funds was dedicated to the residence to complete the removal of asbestos, as well as to repair the roof and update the wiring and plumbing.
For those keeping track, that’s a $1.7million investment, to be paid by public funds. There are some people in the UK that are irritated with the expenditure, although it’s prudent to keep in mind that the repairs would have had to happen eventually anyway (as Kensington Palace is a historic property that is still inhabited as residential and office space), and nearly half of the money was spent well before William and Kate ever decided to move into Kensington Palace.
Now, the budgeting for the actual decoration and restoration of the apartment itself – in an aesthetic sense – has not been revealed, as it will be paid for privately… and THAT’S the number I’d really love to get a look at.