Fencing will go up during papal visit, Nutter says

Rumors of a fence around parts of Center City during the papal visit in September are no longer rumors.

Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter said “crowd control” measures will include fencing when Pope Francis is in town Sept. 26 and 27 because he’s a head of state. 

“The Vatican is the smallest independent country on the planet,” Nutter said. “Creating a secure zone or a secure perimeter on an area where people will have limited access or movement — I think anyone who has been around for a while understands that … you will have some of those areas.”

The mayor urged people to wait until plans are final before panicking because most of the city will be “fairly unaffected,” he said.

“The overwhelming majority of the city of Philadelphia will be fairly unaffected about what is going on in Center City,” Nutter said. “There will be road closures, places where you cannot go, and you will know all of that over the next couple months.”

Nutter advised city residents to wait until security measures are finalized before talking about fleeing town during the World Meeting of Families events including the pope.