Marjorie Merriweather Post is an American socialite and the owner of General Foods, Inc. One of her many estates is Mar-a-Lago, a lavish home in Palm Beach, Florida. The castle on the sand was built in the 1920s for $8 million, and is now regarded as a National Historic Landmark. In 1973, it was willed to the U.S. Government as a retreat for Presidents and visiting foreign dignitaries.
Mar-a-Lago Was Sold To Donald Trump In 1986
According to Los Angeles Times, Post envisioned the house as a future "Winter White House." However, the estate stood vacant, and the annual maintenance bill of Mar-a-Lago is estimated at $1 million. In the past, there have been efforts to return Mar-a-Lago to the Marjorie Merriweather Post Foundation, but was unsuccessful, until 1980.
In 1986, the Foundation sold the property to Donald Trump. The estate has 126 rooms, and it also contains the Mar-a-Lago Club - a members-only club with guest rooms, a spa, and other hotel-style amenities. The Trumps maintain private quarters in a separate, closed-off area of the house and grounds.
Post's Vision Of Making Mar-a-Lago The Winter White House Has Been Fulfilled
But in 1990, Trump was reported to have offered the place due to personal financial crisis. In 1993, it was approved that the estate will be turned into a private club, and it remains until this day, Yahoo! News said.
Now, days before his inauguration, Donald Trump officially declared Mar-a-Lago his winter White House - thus fulfilling Post's vision. The President has spent the last two weekends there, and he recently hosted Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in the estate. Reports say that this weekend, Trump is planning to return to Mar-a-Lago.
