South Philadelphia residents concerned over papal parking

SOUTH PHILADELPHIA -- Some South Philadelphia residents are raising concerns that when the pope arrives their neighborhood will turn into a parking lot and already it's a tough place to find a spot.

"Parking is already difficult here in South Philly so you just got to pray to the park gods," resident Natalie Brewer said.

"We're flooded as it is, so parking is a huge issue for us," resident Joceyln DuPont said.

The concern in some South Philadelphia areas is the line at South Street when the traffic box begins to go into effect Friday evening of the papal weekend.

Cars can drive in, but they can't leave.

Residents are anticipating people driving in to see the pope will fill already crowded streets with few parking options.

"The parking already, you have to drive around to find a spot, period," resident D'Quan Young said.

Councilman Kenyatta Johnson's office covers more than a dozen neighborhoods in the 2nd district and they are receiving a lot of calls with similar concerns.

But on Wednesday night few came to a meeting specifically to address those issues.

Johnson and other leaders want residents to keep voicing concerns so they can solve any issues, hopefully so they can play host and take part in the historic event, too.

"We want my constituents to have as much information as possible. Today is the beginning; we will continue partnering with other organizations and make sure we get the word out," Johnson said.

"The city has done a lot of planning for the pope's visit so I would imagine there would be a real plan for parking," DuPont said.