New bar and pickleball: 'Game On' at DTSB's First Friday

SOUTH BEND, Ind. - Enjoying First Fridays with a paddle in hand from the heart of Downtown South Bend pickleballers, Jean Stopcynski and Jane Hershberger from the Michiana Pickleball Club have watched downtown transform over the years.

“It’s exciting. I am glad that we are expanding, and offering a lot of new things, buildings, and restaurants,” said Stopcynski.

And this year it seems like nearly every First Friday, DTSB is welcoming a new business.

Sidebar opened this week across the street from the federal courthouse.

It’s an elevated cocktail bar by night, known as Java Cafe by Day.

Decked out in emerald green, and sharing a name with the same initials as the city it serves, it is also the sixth business to open its doors this year.

“I anticipate a really full house. It is just nice to bring big city vibes to South Bend,” said Dani Smith a managing partner.

New businesses like this are part of the reason this part of the city produces the most money in terms of the tax base according to DTSB.

DTSB Executive Director, Willow Wetherall, says growth downtown means growth for all of South Bend. Describing it as the economic and cultural heart of the city.

“We like to say downtown is a giver, not a taker. The tax base that is generated here helps improve the quality of life across the whole city,” said Wetherall.

DTSB plans to welcome at least 24 businesses this year.