Building permit for Thessaloniki Holocaust Museum finally issued
Greece’s Environment Ministry and Thessaloniki’s municipal town planning authority issued on December 19 the building permit for the construction of the city’s Holocaust Museum, with work expected to begin next year, the Jewish Community of Thessaloniki announced on Wednesday.
The project is slated for completion in 2026.
“The issuance of the building permit paves the way for the construction of the Holocaust Museum, which is expected to be completed in 2.5 years,” the community said, adding that the museum will be built with funding from the Greek government, Germany, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation and Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla, through the Genesis Prize Foundation.
The construction of a Holocaust Museum in the area of Thessaloniki Rail Cargo Station was decided about a decade ago, due to its historical importance. It was the location from which nearly 50,000 Jews were sent to their deaths in German concentration camps during World War II.
But it took a legislative regulation and two Presidential Decrees to resolve a series of issues, from ownership to land uses in the area.
