South Bend Quality of Life Offers Affordability, Livability

SOUTH BEND, Ind.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--When it came time for John and Molly Whelan to decide where to settle down with their family, after living in Boston and Evansville, Ind., South Bend was an easy choice.

“All of the other benefits are things we discovered after we had committed to moving”

“We honestly could have chosen to go almost anywhere there was a job available,” Whelan said. “So we started to give this search some parameters. This time around we were more careful to consider quality-of-life factors.”

Live large. Spend small.

Like many who have chosen to live and work in South Bend, the Whelans looked at a number of factors that make the city an especially attractive place to call home. Inevitably, the affordable quality of life ranks high on nearly everyone’s list.

According to Patrick McMahon, executive director for Project Future, “When we find that a company has reduced their site location options to a short list, the key question we try to answer for them is this: Can they bring in their key people to run the business and live here, and will they stay?”

Crucial to any city’s cost-of-living index is the availability of well-maintained, affordable housing. South Bend offers a diversity of architectural styles and price ranges as well as neighborhoods with historic character, modern amenities and distinctive charm said McMahon, whose organization works to promote economic development in the area.

In addition, affordable quality of life plays out in other important ways, said South Bend Mayor Stephen J. Luecke.

“Everything is so close and easy to get to in South Bend — home, schools, work, shopping and entertainment,” says Luecke. “That means that people can put in the necessary hours at work, and still have more family time.”

High-quality, accessible health care

The experience of John and Molly Whelan in choosing South Bend comes as no surprise to Ted Foti, senior vice president for Memorial Hospital & Health System, who is responsible for recruiting physicians from across the United States to live and work in the area.

One of Foti’s major goals initially was to establish a local system of medical specialists, so that residents would not need to travel in order to receive specialized care. The result is that the South Bend medical community offers city residents a high level of medical care, both specialized and general.

That can mean the difference between taking an hour for an appointment versus driving two hours in addition to an hour-long appointment.

A rich, culturally diverse atmosphere

According to Jeff Gibney, quality of life is often measured by the presence of postsecondary schools within city limits.

South Bend numbers six major colleges and universities, including the University of Notre Dame, plus several smaller community colleges, said Gibney, who serves the City of South Bend as executive director of the department of community and economic development. Additionally, the Indiana University School of Medicine has a regional campus in South Bend, next to the Notre Dame campus.

“For our city to have so many institutions of higher learning creates cultural venues that infuse a richness into the population,” Gibney said. “It also means constant growth. It’s not a stagnant population.”

South Bend boasts several high-profile performance venues. These include the Morris Performing Arts Center, which consistently ranks in the top 50 worldwide in ticket sales, the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center at Notre Dame, and the award-winning South Bend Civic Theatre.

The sporting life

Recently, South Bend was ranked by Sporting News magazine as one of America's Top 50 sports cities because it offers numerous opportunities to attend and participate in a wide variety of sports.

Options include whitewater rafting and kayaking in the East Race Waterway, the first artificial urban whitewater course in North America.

An ever-expanding river walk allows downtown businesspeople to take their daily constitutional over the lunch hour.

Other sports attractions include:

• Coveleski Stadium, home of the Class A South Bend Silver Hawks
• NCAA Division I-A football and basketball at the University of Notre Dame
• The College Football Hall of Fame
• A system of bike trails that traverse public byways

A short drive to distinctive diversions

South Bend is less than 100 miles from Chicago, which offers all the advantages of a major world-class metropolitan area.

Additionally, a number of unique cultural attractions are within a 50-mile radius of South Bend, including:

• The Indiana Dunes lakeshore
• A profusion of vineyards and orchards in Michigan wine country
• Amish-made furniture and a flea market in nearby Shipshewana

An engaging place for singles or families

As for the Whelan family, South Bend had the main things they were looking for: employment, the climate, the access to airports and Chicago, a university, an art and culture scene, access to lectures, and a good-size town to raise a family.

“All of the other benefits are things we discovered after we had committed to moving,” Molly Whelan said.

“And we’re still discovering new things.”

Note: For part one in this series, click here; for part two, click here.