Francis Hands Hotel to US Oligarch

The Order of the Holy Sepulchre has signed a 30-year lease allowing Four Seasons Hotels to manage the famous Renaissance-era Hotel Columbus on the Via della Conciliazione which leads up to St Peter's Square.

The deal was approved by Francis in June.

Four Seasons is owned by the US oligarch Bill Gates. It will invest €54M into a restoration carried out under the direction of Italian architect Fabrizio Casiraghi. The works will be completed in 2025. The hotel will have around 60 rooms.

Parts of the building will continue to be used as the headquarters of the order which dates back to 1336 and has around 30,000 lay members in 40 countries.

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