Work commenced on Monday to transform the house in Austria where Adolf Hitler was born in 1889 into a police station, a project aimed at deterring individuals who glorify the Nazi dictator.
The determination regarding the future of the Braunau am Inn building, located on Austria’s border with Germany, was made in late 2019.
The plans involve establishing a police station, a district police headquarters, and a security academy branch that will offer human rights training to police officers.
Fencing has been erected and measurements are being taken for the construction work.
The premises are expected to be occupied by the police in early 2026.
An extended legal dispute over ownership of the house preceded the renovation project. The matter was resolved in 2017 when Austria’s highest court ruled that the government had the right to expropriate the building after its owner refused to sell. The option of demolishing it was abandoned.
The building had been leased by Austria’s Interior Ministry since 1972 to prevent its misuse and was sublet to various charitable organizations.
It remained vacant after a care center for adults with disabilities moved out in 2011.
A memorial stone with the inscription “for freedom, democracy and liberty. Never again fascism. Millions of dead remind us” will remain outside the house.
The Austrian government contends that the utilization of the building by the police, as protectors of civil liberties, is the optimal choice.
However, there has been criticism of the plan.
Historian Florian Kotanko raised concerns about the lack of historical contextualization. He argued that the Interior Ministry’s attempt to diminish the building’s “recognition factor” through renovations “is impossible to achieve.”
“Demystification should be a fundamental element,” he added, advocating for the suggestion that the building showcase an exhibition on individuals who saved Jews during the Nazi era.
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