Mansion Goes With Top Campus Job -- President Is Required To Live In `Royal' House

University of Washington employees refer to it simply as "808."

And like 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue or 10 Downing Street, the house at 808 36th Ave. E. in Seattle has a regal bearing.

"808" is the home of UW President William Gerberding and his wife, Ruth. It's the biggest perk that comes with the university's top job. Consider:

FREE RENT

-- The 12,000-square-foot brick mansion in exclusive Washington Park is valued at $2.2 million but costs its residents nothing.

-- A household manager operates the residence and coordinates all university-related social functions at a cost of $160,000 a year.

-- A janitorial service cleans the 13-bedroom, six-bathroom house and takes care of other duties for about $50,000 a year.

-- All maintenance and improvements for the facility - ranging from $501 for tuning and repairing an organ to $1,313 for buying terra-cotta pots to $78,199 for re-carpeting - are paid for by public money or a private endowment.

-- There are no property taxes on the residence, because it is state-owned.

Gerberding acknowledges that some Washingtonians might think he and his wife live like royalty. But that's not by his choice, he says, and the Gerberdings don't always like it.

When the couple arrived in Seattle in 1979, Gerberding said, they probably would have bought a modest home in Wallingford had the choice been left to them.

The president's house was the gift of Maud Walker Ames and Edwin G. Ames, who left most of their fortune to the UW in the 1930s.

GIFT WITH STRINGS

While the couple gave the regents discretion on use of their gift - more than $400,000 - they dictated that the mansion "shall be used solely as a residence" for the school's president.

Based on that condition, the regents decided to require all presidents to live and entertain at "808," officially known as the Walker-Ames Mansion.

Since the mansion is used for official entertainment, the university has obligated itself to operate and maintain it "in a proper manner," as the regents informed Gerberding upon hiring him in 1979.

That has cost a lot of money, much of it from public funds. Mansion-related expenses are broken down into three types: operation, improvements and food and alcohol for official events.

Operating and redecorating the mansion and entertaining in it from the summer of 1988 to the summer of 1991 cost a total of $569,635 in public and Walker-Ames funds.

HOUSEHOLD EXPENSES

The total for fiscal 1990-91 alone, was $160,694: $19,879 for a household coordinator; $11,709 for utilities; $28,046 for grounds maintenance; $17,842 for general house maintenance and repairs; $46,505 for janitorial-maintenance service; $23,619 for improvements and $13,094 for food and alcohol.

Only the improvements and food and alcohol were paid out of the Walker-Ames Fund. The rest was state money.

Excessive spending?

"I don't know," Gerberding said. "Ask the regents."

Regents President H. Jon Runstad says he doesn't see anything improper in the expenditures.

University records indicate the regents regularly authorize improvements to be paid from the private Walker-Ames Fund.

Improvements between fiscal 1988 and 1991 totaled $132,960.

They included: buying wool carpeting with a custom border for $67,314.50 and nylon carpeting for $9,051; remodeling the sunroom for $21,482; replacing fine china for $2,317; re-upholstering a sofa for $4,926, and remodeling a bathroom for $4,619.

University officials said the sunroom project included buying two matching lounge chairs for $1,563 each and two side tables with oak tops for $665 each.

The Walker-Ames Fund is used to pay for all the food and alcohol consumed at "808" because of the many university events held there.

In 1991, for example, the events involved four luncheon-meetings, four afternoon receptions, 11 evening receptions and 11 dinners, including five for the regents and their spouses.

But the Gerberdings reimburse the university for their private meals.

During fiscal 1990-91, the mansion's food and alcohol bill - which included some petty cash for dry cleaning and household supplies - was $15,141. The Gerberdings paid $2,047 of the total.

Not including what the Gerberdings ate in personal meals, the food and alcohol expenditure between the summer of 1988 and the summer of 1991 was $41,853, of which $7,712 went for alcohol.

A household coordinator, Beth Hammermeister, handles catering for university functions, including wine selection; planning, preparing and serving meals for the household as requested; polishing the silver; planting and maintaining the herb and kitchen gardens, and answering the phone.

"It's important for the public to recognize that this is a university facility used for university functions," said Runstad. "It's a wonderful facility."