(JTA) — The Austrian government is looking into expropriating Adolf Hitler’s childhood home.
Trying to ensure the house is not turned into a neo-Nazi shrine, the Interior Ministry may seize the home if its owner refuses to sell it to the government, The Associated Press reported Wednesday. The owner, who has not publicly been identified, reportedly has turned down past offers to sell.
The ministry has rented the home in the German border town of Braunau for several years and sublet it to charitable organizations. The house, which draws neo-Nazi visitors, has stood empty for the past three years after the owner refused to authorize needed renovations, AP reported.
The building is listed as a historical landmark and cannot be razed.
