Villa "Kidney"
The thatched-roof estate in the small village of Boye near Celle looks imposing: even the white entrance gate is thatched. The splendor continues inside - there are many chandeliers and fireplaces in many rooms, and some of the taps in the bathrooms are even gold-plated. But the impression is deceptive: the former dialysis clinic is a “lost place”.
A doctor named Uwe Merkel had big plans in the small town. In 1978, he began building a “dialysis institute”. But when the complex was completed nine years later, its medical use was nowhere to be seen from the outside.
Dr. Merkel had based the design on a stately home and even lived in one of the buildings with his wife. The doctor dug deep into his pockets for this: In addition to the luxurious furnishings, a swimming pool and a large garage with car elevator were also built.
But the doctor died shortly afterwards. A successor continued to treat kidney patients. Operations ceased in 2009 - and the buildings began to fall into disrepair.
In 2012, tge Sparkasse Göttingen (a bank) initiated a forced sale at the Celle district court, but the highest bid was only 600,000 euros. That was too little for the bank; the market value was estimated at two million euros.
A year later, a real estate company from Linz in Austria bid 738,000 euros and became the new owner. But for the time being, nothing happened on the idyllic plot of land on the edge of the village with its old trees.
The site was sold again at the end of 2021. The company that acquired the site had the thatched residential building demolished in 2022. According to reports, a residential park with terraced semi-detached or detached houses is to be built on the 10,000 square meter site. A playground is also planned.
Visited: September 13, 2020
Location: Boye/Celle, Lower Saxony, Germany
Status: Demolished
