Eddy Street prepares for heightened policing presence for Saturday's Notre Dame home game
SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Saturday marks three weeks since a shooting on Eddy Street left a teenage girl injured, as well as a South Bend officer who was struck by a ricochet bullet. Notre Dame will also have its first home football game against Stanford that day since the shooting.
O'Rourke's, a frequently visited restaurant and bar on Eddy Street has been ordered to close at midnight, along with all other restaurants and bars on the same street.
It's part of the response taken by police officials in the wake of gun violence.
Navarre Hospitality oversees O'Rourke's and Vice President Matthew Soutra tells ABC57 News he's expecting to see an increase in police presence on Saturday.
"Obviously, safety is the top priority," Soutra says.
"We want our patrons to feel safe when they come down to Eddy Street and want our staff to feel safe when they come down on Eddy Street. We really believe that the South Bend Police Department is genuinely doing everything they can in order to mitigate the instances as much as possible. There was a heavy police presence on Eddy Street that night, and from what it sounds like, there's going to continue to be an even heavier police presence in the area."
Soutra shares there is a safety plan intact should another unforeseen circumstance happen, where workers have a direct line to South Ben police and can talk to them through walkie talkies.
Notre Dame campus safety sent an email to students Wednesday, saying they're working "Closely with local law enforcement to prepare for the rest of the semester, including during home football game weekends."
A senior at the University of Notre Dame tells ABC57 she's not too concerned about safety with the upcoming home game.
"I haven't really heard much about people being nervous to be out," Sarah Saad says.
ABC57 News reached out to the South Bend Police Department to gather specifics on what security measures will be implemented Saturday, but were there's no new updates aside from what was said at the press conference.