Once a house is empty, it can easily be torn down or renovated, sold at a higher price or rented out. The history of the Uhrmacherhäusl is a stop signal for those homeowners and investors who like to try to create facts with pressure.
The Uhrmacherhäusl in Giesing has long been a symbol of the ruthlessness on the Munich real estate market. The small house has grown to this size since it no longer exists. It’s gone, illegally demolished. Those responsible have now been convicted by the district court. This decision is a stop signal for those homeowners and investors who like to put pressure on facts.
Of course, it’s only a very small minority that does this, but one that shapes the feeling of many Munich tenants: When in doubt, those with a lot of money are the stronger, we’ll lose out. Many in this city can tell how it works, sometimes with subtle pressure, sometimes with overt threats. Once a house is empty, it can easily be torn down or renovated, sold at a higher price or rented out. There, people are no longer a disruptive factor until they pay a lot of money after the renovation.
So the verdict is a signal: laws also apply to renovators, they too must protect monuments and treat people with care. How necessary it is to emphasize a matter of course is indicated at Thalkirchner Straße 80, in what is probably the best-known renovation building in the city, also a listed building. Old doors and door frames were torn out there. The city had the construction stopped, started a fine procedure and wants to closely monitor the further work. That’s right and important.
Brutality on construction works through the power of the factual: gone is gone, out is out. It remains to be seen whether the Uhrmacherhäusl can really be rebuilt. Years ago, attentive neighbors tried to stop the excavator there, but in vain. So look the other way in the future, because it’s no use anyway? No, look, intervene, anyway! This applies to citizens as well as authorities. Only when those who want to make money from unscrupulousness know that it can cost them dearly will they change their minds. Seen in this way, the watchmaker’s house is also a symbol of defensiveness.