Obamas' Planned Move to Historic DC Area Surprises Longtime Resident

The Obamas will move from the White House to a home in Kalorama.

ByABC News
January 18, 2017, 4:38 AM

— -- The transition of power from one president to the next brings a tremendous amount of change to the White House. But the impact extends far beyond 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

This year, that shift will also be felt in one of D.C.'s most historic neighborhoods, Sheridan-Kalorama.

The Obama family is moving from the most famous house in the nation to a private residence on a quiet, tree-lined street less than 3 miles away.

Obama is not the first former president to live in the Northwest Washington neighborhood. Five other presidents called Sheridan-Kalorama home before or after their presidency: Warren G. Harding, Herbert Hoover, Franklin D. Roosevelt, William Howard Taft and Woodrow Wilson. Barack Obama will be the first former commander in chief to move to the neighborhood since Wilson in 1921.

Despite Sheridan-Kalorama's appeal among past presidents, one longtime resident says she's "surprised" the Obamas chose to move there.

"I'm surprised the president would move to a neighborhood where the houses are so close together, but I suppose the Secret Service knows how to take care of that," said Sally Berk, a professional historical preservationist who has lived in Sheridan-Kalorama for 36 years.

"I've never been inside the house, but it's known that it has nine bedrooms," Berk said of the Obamas' new home. "It's a little over 8,000 square feet, but in our neighborhood that's not unusual."

Berk believes the home may have been chosen by the first family because it has ample parking. She suspects it can "accommodate probably eight cars in the parking lot and another two in the garage."

"The best amenity, after the parking lot, is probably the swimming pool," she said. "While I don't expect Obama to invite me over for dinner, I'd be happy if he invited me over for a pool party."

Learn more about Sally Berk and the Obamas' Next Chapter in Kalorama in the video above.

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