South Bend Cubs Eyeing Big Expansion
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe home of the South Bend Cubs minor league baseball team could undergo a major facelift, including the installation of an upper deck. The South Bend Tribune reports team owner Andrew Berlin has announced plans to invest “millions” of dollars in Four Winds Field at Coveleski Stadium, following the 2023 season.
Berlin says the upper deck would wrap around the first and third baselines, but not the outfield to preserve views of the downtown skyline. He also does not want to block views into the park from the apartment complex he built that overlooks left field.
Berlin does not yet know how many seats the expansion will add, nor the exact cost of the project.
“It’s going to be in the millions,” said Berlin. “I’ll have a price tag for you shortly, but the good news is folks around here don’t have to pay any more taxes than they’re already paying.”
The publication says that’s because this year the Indiana General Assembly re-authorized a 1997 state law that had allowed the city to capture sales and income tax generated at some city-owned venues to pay for capital improvements.
The team also will need to make some park upgrades to come into compliance with new Major League Baseball standards by 2025. Upgrades would include LED lighting and office and locker room space for women.
Berlin purchased the team in 2011 from former Indiana Governor and South Bend Mayor Joe Kernan. At the time, the team was still known as the Silverhawks and was affiliated with the Arizona Diamondbacks. In 2014, the Chicago Cubs decided to make the South Bend team an affiliate.
As Berlin celebrates his 10-year anniversary with the South Bend Cubs, click here to read why he initially did not want to buy the team.