'The Sound of Music's' von Trapp Family Hotel Plans Blocked

CNN.com is reporting that Salzburg officials have blocked plans to run a hotel out of a former home of the von Trapp family immortalized in "The Sound of Music" after angry protests by neighbors.
Julie Andrews starred in "The Sound of Music," which immortalized the von Trapp family's story.

The "Villa Trap" is located in a quiet, upscale Salzburg neighborhood and was expected to open its doors to guests this fall. It once belonged to the von Trapps, who gained global fame in the 1965 movie starring Julie Andrews that tells the story of a woman who marries a widower with seven children and teaches them how to sing. Residents in the area feared tourists would tie up traffic and make a nuisance of themselves.

Hotel organizers said they planned to appeal Wednesday's decision by the city's urban planning committee. 

The city of Salzburg announced in the late Spring plans to turn the former home of the Von Trapp family, who became famous with the musical and film The Sound Of Music, into a hotel. 

Reports earlier announced the opening with "Fans will be able to stay in the hotel for around 100 euros (£80) a night...After the von Trapps left the house, Nazi security chief Heinrich Himmler used the villa until 1945. A missionary order which bought the residence after World War II agreed to sell it for use as a hotel. Entrepreneurs plan to make no alterations to the building other than essentials such as painting and re-wiring. According to tourism officials, 40% of overnight stays in Salzburg are from fans of the 1965 Sound of Music film."

"The hotel really is a milestone for the commercialisation of The Sound Of Music for Salzburg," said Leo Bauernberger from the Salzburg provincial tourism board at the time of opening. "The Sound of Music is well and truly a stroke of luck for this city."

Rodgers and Hammerstein's classic, "The Sound Of Music," won the Tony award for Best Musical (actually it tied with "Fiorello" and they both beat out "Gypsy") and the subsequent film version won the Oscar for Best Picture and became the highest grossing film of its time.
The score includes the title song, MY FAVORITE THINGS, EDELWEISS, CLIMB EVERY MOUNTAIN, SIXTEEN GOING ON SEVENTEEN, DO RE MI, and HOW DO YOU SOLVE A PROBLEM LIKE MARIA?