Frederic ConeNews Editor

Students and faculty members returning to school from the summer break may notice a color change of the President’s residence. The Woodbine Cottage underwent a new gray paint job that was needed for repairs to the exterior paint this past summer.

“Roughly five years ago the cottage was painted the dark olive green color with the dark red trim,” said Jennifer Quail, production manager of facilities and services. “Unfortunately the quality of the paint job done at the time wasn’t good, and it should have lasted a lot longer than it did.”

The previous paint on the house began to chip off in many spots and there was also serious sun fading occurring. Decision to re-paint Woodbine Cottage before the paint deteriorated any further was derived by Dean Kattelman, assistant vice president of facilities and services.

Quail, who majored in interior design at SDSU, worked alongside First Lady Marcia Chicoine to decide the color palette for the cottage. Together, they researched styles and colors of houses from the era when it was built in 1887.

“We decided on the gray color because most houses in this region of the time were painted either gray, white or brown,” Marcia Chicoine said. “We have received a lot of good feedback about the new color. People say that it makes the cottage look much bigger.”

The structure that contains the garbage cans is still the green and red, both of which are from the previous paint colors. Marcia Chicoine said it was left it to remind people of what the house used to be colored.

The Chicoines moved into the Woodbine Cottage in January of 2007 when President David Chicoine accepted his position at SDSU. Marcia Chicoine said they have settled in just fine and really enjoy living in the house.

“It’s a very interesting house because of its age,” Marcia Chicoine said. “There’s a lot of open space which makes it very comfortable. David and I spend most of our time in the east porch, although my favorite room in the house is the former music (and) library room just off the main entrance.”

The furnishings in the house are made up by a fairly even mix of the Chicoines’ own items and some that SDSU provided for the cottage. There is a baby grand piano in the main living room and three Harvey Dunn paintings on loan from the South Dakota Art Museum.

“Due to the construction going on in the museum and the lack of space to show works, the museum asked us if we would like to have the three paintings displayed in our house,” Marcia Chicoine said. “Of course we said yes. Who wouldn’t want to have works of Harvey Dunn displayed in their home?”

Overall, the Chicoine’s are content in their color option.

“The gray color adds a distinction to the house and I am very pleased with how the paint job has turned out,” Marcia Chicoine said.

The paint job cost SDSU $17,000 and was done by Califan Painting company.

#1.1599624:2984210835.jpg:A familiar sight to the Brookings community, the historic Woodbine Cottage underwent a color change.:A familiar sight to the Brookings community, the historic Woodbine Cottage underwent a color change to its exterior paint this past summer. SDSU facilities and services assisted in the process of the job, and the Cottage was featured in the 2008 Brookings Home Tour.:Collegian Photo by Aaron Stoneberger#1.1599628:1559836277.jpg:The Woodbine Cottage on Harvey Dunn Street has been home to SDSU President David Chicoine.:The Woodbine Cottage on Harvey Dunn Street has been home to SDSU President David Chicoine and his wife, Marcia, since 2007. They are the seventeenth presidential couple to reside in the Cottage. It was built in 1887 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990. :Collegian Photo by Frederic Cone