STORRS — - Over the last four years, the University of Connecticut has spent nearly $225,000 to eliminate mold from the president's house, but the problem remains persistent enough to have caused a severe allergic reaction for the wife of new president Michael Hogan, a university spokesman said Thursday.

Virginia Hogan's reaction to the mold in the Oak Hill Road residence was so severe when she and her husband moved here last year that the university quickly took steps to move the couple to a house on nearby Gurleyville Road. The university has spent close to $200,000 on leasing fees, housekeeping fees and renovations to the Hogans' new house.

UConn spokesman Richard Veilleux said the mold problem at the former president's house on Oak Hill Road was addressed during a massive renovation to the house in 2004-05 that cost more than $1 million. Of that money, roughly $192,000 was spent on eliminating mold and associated costs, such as demolition of mold-infected building frames, Veilleux said.

Last year, after the Hogans arrived, the university spent an additional $31,371 to eliminate mold growths that had appeared since the last overhaul, Veilleux said. He said the mold in the house has mostly been removed, but cautioned that it could reappear.