Updated

Officials say a plan to establish an expensive campground for papal pilgrims in a large Philadelphia park has been scrapped.

The World Meeting of Families had announced on Wednesday that independent company ESM Productions was going to operate Francis Fields Campgrounds in the eastern part of Fairmount Park.

The site was to have accommodated 16,000 people and charge $199 per camper — with costs for tents, cars, and RVs ranging from $99 to $999.

But ESM Productions said in a statement Friday that the plan was canceled due to a lack of interest and the fact that "plenty of accommodations" are still available in Philadelphia.

Philadelphia's hotel industry said Friday that about 3,000 of the 11,200 downtown rooms were still available two weeks away from the pontiff's Sept. 26 arrival.

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This story has been corrected to change the name of the company from EMS Productions to ESM Productions