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Austria turns Hitler's birthplace into police station to deter neo-Nazi visits
In Braunau am Inn, Austria, the building where Adolf Hitler was born has been turned into a police station to prevent it from being used as a pilgrimage site by neo-Nazis. After renovations costing around 20 million euros, it opened as the district police headquarters and a station.
Austria has taken a radical step to break the symbolic power of the house where Adolf Hitler, one of history's darkest figures, was born. The building in Braunau am Inn, once a frequent destination for neo-Nazis, has been turned into a local police station.
The building where Hitler was born on April 20, 1889, has been handed over to the police force after a lengthy legal process and extensive renovations costing around 20 million euros. It will now house the Braunau am Inn District Police Headquarters and a station.
After remaining in private ownership for many years, the building was expropriated by the state in 2017. It had previously housed a school and the Lebenshilfe organization, which supports people with disabilities, but had stood empty for a long time after that organization moved out around 15 years ago.
Options such as demolishing the building or turning it into a museum had also been discussed. However, an expert commission set up to address the issue rejected those proposals and recommended rebuilding it in a way that would make it harder to recognize.
Braunau Mayor Johannes Waidbacher said the opening of the police station would end years of debate over the building. Officials noted that neo-Nazis had repeatedly used it as a pilgrimage site and that the new function would reduce that interest.
Florian Kotanko, head of the Braunau Contemporary History Society, said he did not object to the police use but that it would not change the fact that Braunau is Hitler's birthplace. Kotanko added that the presence of a police station could deter actions such as laying wreaths or giving Nazi salutes in front of the building.
The decision to turn the building into a police station was made in November 2019, and a Europe-wide architectural competition was held as part of the project.
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