Oskar Schindler's former factory in the Czech Republic will be declared a listed monument, the Oskar-Schindler Foundation said on Thursday.

The foundation took over the management of the dilapidated building in the village of Brnenec in August. It plans to restore it and turn it into a Holocaust memorial by 2019.

Oskar Schindler (1908-1974) was a German industrialist and Nazi spy whose story became famous through Steven Spielberg's 1993 Oscar-winning film "Schindler's List." By employing Jews in his ammunitions factory, the businessman defied the Nazi regime and saved the lives of 1,200 of them. He had written down the names of the people to be protected on a list.

The site of the factory has been open to visitors since 2010. It is located near the former concentration camp in Brnenec. As the only remaining Nazi concentration camp site in the country, "It is one of the best-known buildings in the Czech Republic," said Jaroslav Novak, the head of the foundation. The organization believes the memorial would attract more visitors to the region.

eg/kbm (dpa, KNA)