F-1 Spurs Sao Paulo Residents to Rent Homes
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Expat Village is edited and published by Iain Williams
in Caracas, Venezuela.
A Bloomberg
story by Alex Duff and Telma Marotto at www.bloomberg.com
Sao Paulo residents want their piece of the $110 million the city estimates Formula One fans will spend this weekend.
The Brazilian Grand Prix, to be held in two days at the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace in the Interlagos suburb, is the last race of the year and will decide the season championship between Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen.
All of the 120,000 racetrack tickets sold at prices as high as 1,865 reais ($1,044), according to the race's Web site. Gilmar Santana is one of the people who lives nearby charging admission to his home to watch the race from his terrace.
``The extra money always helps,'' said Santana, 34, an unemployed building superintendent.
He said he will cram 70 racing fans into the three-bedroom home that he shares with his mother, two sisters and a niece. He lives about 200 meters (656 feet) from the track.
``My house is in a strategic spot,'' he said. ``Anyone coming to the race can see it. And it happens that the people who didn't get the tickets, they see the people upstairs in the terrace, they see there's a party going on. They know how to find their way into it.''
He said he expects to make at least 6,300 reais.
Sao Paulo city officials say about half the race-goers last year came from elsewhere in Brazil and one-quarter from abroad.
Youngest Champion Possible
On the track, Hamilton is seeking to become the youngest champion at age 22 and the first black winner of the F-1 crown. He has a four-point lead over McLaren teammate Alonso, a Spaniard who is trying for a third straight title. Ferrari's Raikkonen is three points further back.
It's the first time since 1986 three drivers contested the title in the season-ending race.
Santana said he has about seven spots left at his home. He's charging 20 reais for the qualifying session tomorrow and 70 reais for the race, which starts at 2p.m. local time the following day.
Another resident of the neighborhood, Israel dos Santos, is charging five people 200 reais each to watch the race from his 100-square-meter eighth-floor apartment along with him, his girlfriend and his nephew.
``Other neighbors in the building are doing the same,'' Dos Santos, 34, said. ``Everybody wants to have the chance to do some business.''
Just outside the track, Santana said he is making plans to paint the Formula One cars in their positions on the starting grid on the walls of his roof terrace. It's art as well as business to him.
``The championship is so beautiful,'' Santana said.
Expat Village is edited and published by Iain Williams
in Caracas, Venezuela.
© Copyright 2003 by Expat-Village.com
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