The Interior Ministry took over the main lease from the family that owned the building in 1972 to ensure it had the final say on the use of the building. In 1984, the government sought to acquire the building outright from Gerlinde Pommer, a descendant of the original owners, who by that time had sole possession of the property, but she refused to sell.

At the same time, she also refused to invest in the building, making it difficult for the government to find a tenant who met the requirement to use it only for administrative, educational or social services purposes. In 2017, the government seized the building from Ms. Pommer, bringing an end to the dispute.

A redesign competition for the building’s new purpose will begin this month, with work on the building to start next year, Mr. Peschorn said.

The competition will be open to architects from across the European Union in hopes of finding a concept that will ensure the “innovative use and function of the space.” The winner will be announced in 2020, the Interior Ministry said.

Over the years, the house has served as a makeshift museum, a school and a library. For more than three decades an organization offering support and integration assistance for disabled people ran a workshop in the building, but the group moved out in 2011 because the owner refused to bring the building up to code.