Santa Maria del Popolo
At the same time the basilica became a parish church when Pope Pius IV created the Parish of St. Andrew "outside Porta Flaminia" with the motu proprio "Sacri apostolatus" on 1 January 1561 and united it in perpetuity with the Augustinian priory. The care of the new parish was entrusted to the friars and Pope Pius V moved the seat of the parish to Santa Maria del Popolo. The parish still exists encompassing a large area comprising the southern part of the Flaminio district, the Pincian Hill and the northernmost part of the historic centre around Piazza del Popolo. The basilica was made a titular church on 13 April 1587 by Pope Sixtus V with the apostolic constitution "Religiosa". The first cardinal priest of the "titulus" was Cardinal Tolomeo Gallio. Pope Sixtus V also enhanced the liturgical importance of the basilica elevating it for the rank of station church in his 13 February 1586 bull which revived the ancient custom of the Stations. (This role was lost in modern times.) The same pope included the church among the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome instead of the inconveniently located basilica of San Sebastiano fuori le mura.
Santa Maria del Popolo
The 15th-century bell tower is placed at the end of the right transept. The structure was later incorporated into the Neo-Classical monastery that covered the larger part of its body. The tall brick tower was built in Northern Italian style which was unusual at the time in Rome but probably suited the taste of the Lombard congregation. The conical spire, which was built of petal shaped clay bricks, is surrounded with four cylindrical pinnacles with conical caps. These pinnacles have two superimposed rows of blind arcades with cusped brick arches. The spire is crowned with a ball and cross finial with an added weather vane. The top part of the tower shows a strong similarity to the bell tower of the Basilica of San Zeno in Verona. The rectangular tower is articulated by stone cornices. On the top floor it has large arched windows on every side. Only damaged traces of the original stone mullions and ornamental brickwork parapets survived in the openings except on the eastern side where the mullion remained intact. This is a typical biforate window with small Tuscan pillars and a quatrefoil.