McDonald’s, the fast food restaurant chain, is planning to open a branch on the small square next to the colonnade of Saint Peter’s in Rome. This small square once was the site of a bus terminus, and the restaurant would be on the ground floor of a building owned by the Vatican, which houses the flats of several Cardinals. Their Eminences are not happy.
The Vatican owns numerous properties in Rome, many of which are rented out for peppercorn rents. One assumes this is one of the things the ongoing financial reforms will address: that is, getting a proper return on these properties, which may involve dealing with squatters, or evicting those who have not paid their rent for years, or negotiating with sitting tenants. After all, the Vatican needs the money. Hence, when McDonald’s comes calling, offering a very good rent for a prime property, well, it must be an answer to the prayers of APSA, the agency that deals with the Vatican’s holdings. The site is a good one, perfect for catching the numerous tourists who mill around the area all day; the rent, accordingly, will be handsome.
