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FEBRUARY 2008 Letter from the Mayor Dear Friends and Neighbors, Human activity often slows in the winter months. Like our animal counterparts, some of us take refuge from the cold or fly south for warmer temperatures. But there is no hibernating for the City of South Bend's efforts to land new businesses, especially high -tech enterprises and nanotechnology firms. Last spring, it was announced that the University of Notre Dame would host the newest national research center for the world's leading computer chip makers, the Midwest Institute for Nanoelectronics Discovery (MIND). Since that announcement, we have aimed to strike when the iron is hot — even when the mercury seems to disappear from the thermometer. The most visible impact is happening along Angela Boulevard, across from the Notre Dame campus and just east of the Eddy Street Commons development. Iron girders give shape to the first building for Innovation Park at Notre Dame. With assistance from the City of South Bend, Innovation Park represents a portion of Indiana's first two -site State - Certified Technology Park. Innovation Park will facilitate commercialization for all forms of research at Notre Dame, the Indiana University School of Medicine in South Bend and other institutions of higher education. When it opens this fall, the three -story building on the 12 -acre site will act as a way station for emerging companies as their ideas are transformed into viable market ventures. In a year or two, as these ventures outgrow their space at Innovation Park, they will need a place to put down roots and expand their businesses. They can experience a seamless transition with continuing support by moving to the other portion of South Bend's two -site State - Certified Technology Park: Ignition Park. We recently celebrated a key milestone in this development with the formal naming of the 83 -acre Sample Street site as Ignition Park. The site, southeast of Sample and Chapin streets in the former Studebaker Corridor, has been a place where the City of South Bend has mounted Indiana's most aggressive environmental restoration effort, removing deteriorated buildings that blighted the landscape. It's where Studebaker once inspired with its traditions of quality, reliability and innovative styling. But it's also where vacant and underutilized buildings reminded us of layoffs and projected a rust -belt image. Ignition Park will recapture the proud history of this area with efforts under way to capture jobs and investment that are a portion of the projected $1 trillion U.S. nanoelectronics industry. What are South Bend's chances to succeed? Jeffrey Welser, director of the Semiconductor Research Corp.'s Nanoelectronics Research Initiative, made these comments in recent articles appearing in many nanoelectronics publications: "When I look back to March 2008 when we announced the location of MIND in South Bend, and when I look at the progress that has been made since then, including establishing Ignition Park and Innovation Park, it reaffirms — without any doubts — that we made exactly the right decision.... Cities typically have not played the kind of active role that South Bend has when it comes to establishing these types of centers.... South Bend is positioning itself to be at the ground level of these new ground- breaking industries." So while temperatures may seem cold, South Bend is regarded by some within the nanoelectronics industry as a hot place for potential development. Sincerely, P. S. For more articles related to Ignition Park, visit our web site: www.SouthBendIN.gov � l so, THIS MONTH... Mayor's Letter Morris PAC Spring Schedule Restore Michiana Spring Cleanup 2009 14th Annual River Cleanup St. Paddy's Day Tent Party & Pub Tour Composting Workshop • 7Xe • • • PERFORMING ARTS CENTER • • 2009 SPRING SCHEDULE • • March • • ♦ Gordon Lightfoot 8:00 PM, • • Thursday, March 12 • ♦ The 25th Annual Putnam • • • County Spelling Bee Friday, • • March 13 at 8:00 PM & • • Saturday, March 14 at 2:00 PM • • & 8:00 PM • • ♦ South Bend Symphony Pops! • • Presents • • "Photochoreography" • • 8:00 PM, Saturday, March 21 • • April • • ♦ South Bend Symphony • • Orchestra Presents "Sacred • • Spring: A Choral Festival" • • 8:00 PM, Saturday, April 4 • • ♦ Annie Friday, April 10 at • • 8:00 PM & Saturday, April 11 • • at 2:00 PM & 8:00 PM. • • • ♦ Riverdance Tuesday, April 14 • at 7:30 PM & Wednesday, • • April 15 at 2:00 PM & 8:00 PM • • ♦ Umphrey's McGee 8:00 PM, • • Saturday, April 18 • • May • • ♦ South Bend Symphony • • Orchestra Presents: "Magical Melodies" 8:00 PM Saturday, • • May 16 • • For more information, please call • • the Morris Box Office at 574 -235- • • 9190 or visit morriscenter.org •