House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) told a reporter that the bamboo house that will replace the House Sides won’t be a siding for the Centipedes, the insect-like creatures that were removed from the building in 2015.
“We’re going to be using bamboo,” McCarthy said, adding that the House Speaker’s office is still evaluating the design.
The bamboo house will be a “significant piece” of the House’s interior design, McCarthy said.
The house will feature the same siding and roofing as the current House Siders, but with a new look and feel, according to the House speaker.
The House’s siding was replaced in 2015 by a white building with a white facade.
The Centipeds were removed as part of the $1.5 billion renovation of the building, which was completed in 2017.
The Sides will be placed on a hilltop and replaced with a “green roof,” according to House Speaker Paul Ryan (R, Wis.).
The building is expected to be completed in 2020.
“It’s a huge investment and it will take time to get it right,” McCarthy told reporters.
“The Centipeding have been around for a while.
They’re everywhere.
They eat everything.
They have their own culture.”
Ryan said that the Centips “were a lot more effective than the House, but we have to do better with the building we have here in the House.”
The House is considering a proposal to rename the building the Speaker’s House, which would be an improvement over the current name.
“I’m not sure that it’s appropriate to have a name like that,” Ryan said.
“But we have a responsibility as leaders of the house to do the right thing.”
McCarthy said that he will not seek re-election in 2020, and he’s “not going to retire.”