The Berlin authorities are considering the possibility of transferring the former Goebbels villa to new owners free of charge, subject to the restoration and maintenance of the complex. This was stated by Berlin's Finance Minister Stefan Evers, UNN reports with reference to Deutsche Welle.
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For about 20 years, Berlin has been looking for new owners for a complex of buildings that includes the former villa of Nazi propaganda minister Goebbels. The complex is located near Berlin on an area of almost 7 hectares.
The buyers were in no hurry to sign the agreement to purchase the land and buildings, as millions of euros had to be invested in the reconstruction. Now they are ready to give the land and buildings for free. But with an obligation to reconstruct and maintain the complex.
I propose that anyone who wants to occupy this facility should accept it as a gift from the state of Berlin
He added that the villa is under threat of demolition. If no owner is found to take over the restoration and maintenance of the villa, Berlin will have no choice but to demolish it, Evers said.
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The villa is located on the shores of Lake Constance and was built for the head of Nazi propaganda Joseph Goebbels in 1936. During the Soviet occupation, a complex of educational and residential buildings for the local Komsomol, the Union of Free German Youth, was built near it. The authorities spend about 280 thousand euros a year to maintain the villa in its current state.
This is not the first time Germany has faced the problem of what to do with former Nazi sites. Demolishing them can be a difficult task, and on the other hand, they risk becoming magnets for far-right extremists.