Eddy Street Neighborhood

In a public-private partnership, a developer worked with University of Notre Dame, a local revitalization group, and the City of South Bend to create a new 48-acre neighborhood. The Eddy Street Neighborhood “was a partnership in the truest sense,” says Tom McGowan of Kite Realty Group. “We may have developed the model for the country in establishing a tremendous mixed-use development that serves not only the university but the broader community.”

The neighborhood of about a dozen blocks is a new “college town” for the city. Its mixed-use main street includes more than 100,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space and another 80,000 square feet of offices. Two hotels offer more than 300 rooms (Eddy Street is a short walk from the football stadium and other important destinations).

Eddy Street adds a substantial population to the city's Northeast area, with more than 700 residences of various types and sizes. Thirty single-family houses (out of 52) were built for low-income home buyers.

“Eddy Street isn't just a neighborhood; it's the embodiment of Notre Dame's commitment to bridging the gap between campus and community,” says the design team. “Nestled at the southern border of the university, this vibrant mixed-use development pulsates with a spirit of inclusivity and shared purpose.”

Lu Ella Webster, a lifelong resident of the Northeast, of which Eddy Street Neighborhood is a part, argues that Eddy Street has added to the quality of life. “Those of us who were homeowners (in the old neighborhood) are 100 percent better off now, 500-plus percent better off,” says Webster, a Rosa Parks Award winner. She works at the Robinson Community Learning Center, a key civic asset in Eddy Street. The Robinson Center partners with the university on outreach programs and provides learning and enrichment for all ages. 

Eddy Street's roots go back to the 1990s, when the Northeast neighborhood at the university’s southern edge was in decline. A university program established the Robinson Center, which planted the first seeds of trust between the neighborhood and the institution.

Meanwhile, a campus land-use plan reconfigured the southern part of the campus to orient streets toward a planned new neighborhood that became Eddy Street. A performing arts center, museum of art, sculpture park, the school of architecture, and the Irish Green—an important public space—were placed adjacent to the college town, setting the stage for the Eddy Street Neighborhood.

The Northeast Neighborhood Revitalization Organization (NNRO) was established with funding from the University, the City of South Bend, and three other community institutions. The board included seven neighborhood residents and seven contributing institution members. This organization led the redevelopment of several houses in the district and, ultimately, the ‘triangle” area of homes in the Eddy Street neighborhood, where most new homes are reserved for low-income buyers. These houses are designed in an architectural style consistent with the surrounding neighborhood pattern, including front porches and alley-loaded garages.

Eddy Street provides several public spaces, including a couple of pocket parks and a dog park with a “sculpted pond.” It is built on a city bus route, and includes a bike lane through the neighborhood connected to a larger bicycle network. It was built as a vibrant hub to connect students, faculty, and residents. It does many things for the city, in the city.

“Indeed, the city can point to Eddy Street with pride, as well they should. After all, Eddy Street is not part of the Notre Dame campus. It is part of the city of South Bend,” states Fritz Duda, University of Notre Dame Trustee.