The Chancellor's Bungalow in Bonn has reopened to the public following extensive renovations. Between 2024 and 2025, a state-of-the-art fire protection system was installed that meets strict heritage conservation standards. Led by Department BA II 4 of the Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning (BBR), construction began in February 2024 and concluded successfully in November 2025.

Architect Sep Ruf designed the Chancellor's Bungalow, which was completed in 1964 under the direction of Chancellor Ludwig Erhard. Conceived as both an official residence and state reception venue for German chancellors, the building stands as a landmark of post-war German modernism and an enduring symbol of the Bonn Republic. Its elegant design seamlessly blends a generous reception hall for state functions with private residential quarters. While Chancellors Erhard, Kiesinger, Schmidt, and Kohl actually lived there, Willy Brandt and briefly Gerhard Schröder used it exclusively for official state purposes.

When the government relocated to Berlin in 1999, the building lost its original purpose. It was designated a protected federal monument and entered North Rhine-Westphalia's heritage register in 2001. After years of vacancy, the Wüstenrot Foundation partnered with the Federal Government and the Rhineland Heritage Office to develop an adaptive reuse strategy beginning in 2003—a transformation completed by 2009. Today, the Foundation House of History of the Federal Republic of Germany operates the historically significant building as a museum venue, offering guided tours and hosting select events.

Set within a expansive heritage park in Bonn, the Chancellor's Bungalow shares its grounds with Schaumburg Palace and the "76 Building," home to the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The Federal Agency for Real Estate (BImA) holds ownership of the structure, while the Federal Building Authority—now the BBR—has overseen all maintenance and preservation work since 1964.

www.bbr.bund.de