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Most of the best papal venue spots will require free tickets

Free tickets will be required for the best seats at Pope Francis' three public appearances, promoters and the Secret Service said Wednesday.

Free tickets will be required for the best seats at Pope Francis' three public appearances, promoters and the Secret Service said Wednesday.

And getting them may be difficult.

Tickets for the biggest events - the Festival of Families and a Mass on the Ben Franklin Parkway - have already been allocated to 219 parishes in the city and region. Those venues are expected to draw as many as one million people to the city. Those without tickets will be located farthest from Eakins Oval, where the stage for the altar will be.

The pope's appearance at Independence Hall will also require free tickets, according to details released Wednesday. The World Meeting of Families said 5,000 tickets would be allocated online for the public on a first-come, first-served basis on Tuesday.

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia issued a statement Wednesday night to clarify that 85 percent of the Parkway would be open to the non-ticketed public. The map released hours earlier showed more than half of the Parkway would require tickets.

The archdiocese said all World Meeting participants, representing 100 countries, would enjoy ticketed Parkway access.

The World Meeting, it said, "strove to keep the vast majority of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway open to the public while also ensuring that parishioners of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, which is the host, could be part of this historic event."

Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims are expected to jam the Parkway - for the Festival of Families celebration on Sept. 26, and for the Mass the next day - and Independence Mall on Sept. 26.

Also announced Wednesday in the latest deluge of information surrounding the papal visit were pedestrian walking routes to security "magnetometers" for ticketed and non-ticketed attendees. and a list of prohibited items.

The Festival of Families and the papal Mass at 4 p.m. Sept. 27 will be ticketed from Eakins Oval up to 20th Street. The general public is welcome - un-ticketed - from 20th to City Hall. Even those without tickets will have to pass through security magnetometers to get onto the Parkway, though magnetometers from 17th Street east go away in time for the papal Mass to ease congestion and accommodate more people.

Tickets are being distributed to parishes in Philadelphia, New Jersey, Delaware, and throughout Pennsylvania. Others to get tickets include Project HOME, ministerial outreach programs of Catholic Social Services, and members of other faith communities within the Philadelphia region.

"These plans were put in place to ensure that representatives representing the vibrant life and ongoing work of the archdiocese were part of these joyful events," said Donna Crilley Farrell, executive director of the World Meeting of Families.

"It is important to be clear that the announcement of limited ticketing does not limit participation in these events in any way. There is plenty of room for all who wish to attend."

Francis' speech on immigration and religious freedom at Independence Hall will be an entirely ticketed event. About 25,000 tickets have been allocated for distribution to "ethnic apostolates" and immigrant communities through the Archdiocesan Office of Multicultural Ministries, organizers said. Members of the public can reserve the remaining 5,000 tickets, which will be available online Tuesday. Instructions on how to reserve the free tickets will come Friday, organizers said.

All of the events will be shown on 40 Jumbotrons positioned around the "Francis festival grounds" - the area closed to inbound traffic during the weekend.

In addition to the events on the Parkway and at Independence Hall, the screens will show Francis' arrival at Atlantic Aviation, Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul, the pope's arrival at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, his address at the seminary to international bishops, his visit with inmates at Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility, and his air departure Sunday night.

For help navigating how to get into the festival - both the ticketed and non-ticketed areas - the Secret Service, along with the city, released a guide Wednesday showing pedestrian routes for the hundreds of thousands of expected pilgrims.

The map includes locations of security checkpoints and medical stations, and a lengthy list of what not to bring.

It largely guides visitors from operating SEPTA stops to magnetometer security checkpoints at the heart of the festivities.

There are special-access routes for ticketed and non-ticketed attendees.

The list of prohibited items inside the most secure zone includes: big posters, selfie sticks, aerosol cans, ammunition, animals other than service and guide animals, backpacks and bags exceeding the size restrictions (18 by 13 by 7 inches), balloons, bicycles, hard coolers (soft-side thermal coolers are allowed), drones or other unmanned aircraft systems, explosives, firearms or weapons of any kind (including toys and replicas), glass, thermal, or metal containers, laser pointers, Mace or pepper spray, packages, signs exceeding the size restrictions (5 feet by 3 feet and 1/4 inch) made of any material except cardboard, poster board or cloth, and structures and supports for signs and placards. The rules also prohibit "any other items determined to be a potential safety hazard."

Bicycles will be allowed everywhere within the festival grounds except the secure perimeter, which on the new map is represented by blue, purple, and red areas.

215-854-5506@juliaterruso