Meghan Markle, Prince Harry’s $3 Million Home Renovations Include Two Orange Gardens And A ‘Floating Floor’
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have spent over $3 million on renovations at their new home, Frogmore Cottage, and those redesigns reportedly include two orange gardens and “floating floors,” The Sun reports.
As previously detailed by The Inquisitr, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been in the process of updating the centuries-old Windsor Family property — a gift to them from Queen Elizabeth — and have spent over £2.4million (about $3.05 million) renovating the property. That staggering price tag has raised the ire of the British public, considering that they’re picking up the bill on the construction and redesign. But now, new details of those renovations are laying out just exactly how that money was spent, and some of the items on the bill are raising eyebrows.
For example, paperwork filings with the Windsor and Maidenhead Borough Council reveal that the couple was approved for two orangeries — that is, indoor orange groves akin to giant greenhouses. Another costly renovation includes a “floating floor” in the designer kitchen. A “floating floor,” according to The Spruce, is a new floor laid directly on top of an existing one, instead of removing the old one. In the case of Frogmore Cottage, builders weren’t able to remove the old floor so they laid new timber across it.
Revealed: How Harry and Meghan splashed out £2.4m of YOUR cash on Frogmore Cottage https://t.co/wSewV834kL pic.twitter.com/9OihT85MpY
— Daily Mail U.K. (@DailyMailUK) June 25, 2019
Elsewhere, all of the home’s fireplaces and chimneys were removed, according to The Daily Mail, replaced with “fashionable log burners.” The couple has his-and-her dressing rooms, and many of the walls were torn down to expand the sizes of existing rooms. In addition, many of the ceiling joists were removed or replaced.
In May, as Inside Edition reported at the time, the couple spent $66,000 on soundproofing the home — the home is in the flight path of an airport, and the couple have a new baby.
So, why has the cost gone so high? In addition to the couple’s reportedly lavish spending, there’s also the fact that the building is centuries old, and as such, requires great care. It also required updating all of the electrical and plumbing work, as well as turning the home, which had previously been five apartments, into one unit. For what it’s worth, though it’s called a “cottage,” it’s anything but — it’s a huge mansion, although it’s comparatively small by the standards of other Windsor Family properties.
The money to pay for the renovations comes from the Sovereign Grant, an annual government grant — this year’s was £82.2, or about $104.4 million — that is allotted to support the monarchy.
