Hitler's Birth Home To Become Police Station... But That's Not What Most Austrians Wanted

Adolf Hitler's birthplace in Austria is set to reopen as a police station, bringing an end to years of debate over the future of one of Europe's most controversial buildings. The 17th century property in Braunau am Inn, where Hitler was born in 1889, has undergone a €20 million (£17.3 million) redevelopment after being nationalised by the Austrian government.

Officials believe housing a police station there will prevent the site from becoming a destination for far-right extremists while ensuring a permanent state presence.

The decision, however, has divided public opinion. Many Austrians had hoped the building would instead become a centre dedicated to remembrance, anti-fascism and tolerance.

Others believed demolition was the better option, although that was ruled out because the building is protected as part of the town's historic centre. The project reflects Austria's continuing struggle over how to deal with places linked to the Nazi era.

More Details on the Police Station Decision

Interior Minister Gerhard Karner is due to officially open the new police station on Wednesday, marking the completion of a plan first recommended by a government-appointed commission of experts in 2016. The redevelopment follows the government's decision to nationalise the building after years of disagreement over its future.

The commission, made up of 13 experts, concluded that turning the property into a police station was the best way to stop it becoming a place of pilgrimage for neo-Nazis and other far-right groups. In its report, the panel said the use of Salzburger Vorstadt 15 as a police station would ensure 'restricted public access and the presence of state authority'.

The experts also argued that using the building as a government institution would provide 'a high degree of stability and public trust'.

Other proposals had been considered but ultimately rejected. A museum dedicated to the site's history was ruled out because experts feared visitors could misuse or misrepresent a place of remembrance. Demolishing the building was also dismissed. Aside from its protected heritage status within Braunau am Inn's historic centre, the commission warned that destroying it could itself become a symbol of denying the site's past.

The building has had several uses over the decades. During Nazi rule it became known as the Braunau Gallery in the Führer's Birth House and was treated as a place honouring Hitler. After the property was returned to its original owners in 1952 as part of restitution, it was rented by the Austrian government and later used as both a school and a social care centre. It eventually stood empty for years before being expropriated by the government in 2016.

Stefan Marte, the Austrian architect leading the redevelopment, said the project aimed to restore the building's 17th century character rather than simply remove changes made during 1938.

Public Opinion Remains Divided

Despite the government's decision, many Austrians would have preferred a different future for the building. A 2023 survey of 1,000 people, commissioned by a group calling for more public discussion, showed only six per cent supported administrative use of the site.

More than half of those surveyed wanted the property to become an institution focused on remembrance, anti-fascism and tolerance. Around a quarter believed the building should be demolished altogether.

The debate reflects Austria's continuing efforts to confront the legacy of Nazism. For many years after the Second World War, the country promoted what became known as the 'victim myth', presenting itself primarily as a victim of Germany's annexation in March 1938. Public understanding has since shifted to acknowledge that Austrians also occupied senior positions within the Nazi leadership.

Other Instances of Issues Handling Historical Sites

Questions about how to handle historical sites linked to that period continue to arise across the country.

In 2023, the youth wing of the far-right Freedom Party used images of the historic balcony at Vienna's Hofburg Palace in a video promoting what it described as 'readiness to act' against issues including mass immigration and gender ideology. The balcony, now part of the House of Austrian History, has been closed in part to discourage associations with Hitler's speech proclaiming Germany's 'Anschluss' with Austria.

Museum director Monika Sommer has encouraged public discussion over the site's future, including inviting artists to submit memorial designs that could give the balcony a different meaning.

Elsewhere in Vienna, authorities this year altered the city's statue of former mayor Karl Lueger by tilting it 3.5 degrees to the right during renovation work. The project aimed to place his legacy into context, acknowledging both his role in developing the city's infrastructure and his strongly antisemitic views. Lueger's name had already been removed from part of Vienna's historic Ringstrasse in 2012.

The decision to turn Hitler's birthplace into a police station may settle the question of the building's future, but public opinion shows many Austrians still believe the site should have been used to promote remembrance rather than state administration.