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REGULAR MEETING NOVEMBER 14, 2016 that point. The streets downtown and the river lights really complement each other but you also need downtown development like this proposal. He stated he is in favor of the proposal at its current height. Mr. Mathews knows what he is doing and South Bend is on its way. For many people the job is secondary to the location of the job. We have to build a City where people want to live. We are on our way but we need more development and this is a great next step. Mathew Teeters, 223 East Colfax Avenue, thanked the Council for listening to the public. He stated he is a neighbor of Mr. Mathews and this is a project that will be in his backyard. He stated he is a local area doctor who works in Granger and he used to live in Granger which was comfortable. It did not take long to buy into Mr. Mathew's vision for South Bend and understand that this is where South Bend should go. In 2012, he moved downtown to the East Bank Townhomes which is has been phenomenal. We have heard a lot about the East Bank Plan and what the East Bank should be but we also need to think about the future of South Bend and not just a plan that is set and static. This has to be dynamic growth and it has to change. Mary Bundy, 318 South Francis Street South Bend, stated she is so amazed at the people who came before her and fully agree with what they said. She stated people for good reasons want to stick to a plan but this plan was in 2008. The fact that we have had our younger demographic not growing should be alarming to this Council. If we don't have the younger demographic, this City will not flourish. We need to look toward what the younger demographic wants when developing our City. She stated this development also affects our health. We need to encourage density so that people use our walking paths in South Bend. If we can encourage walking we will be a much healthier City. The health of our citizens is important and it will attract the younger demographic which is not moving here now. Sharon Teska, 508 South 23rd Street South Bend, stated she lives in her grandmother's home now but lived a long part of her life out on the East Coast. Those are very vibrant communities where walking through those towns you can feel the life and culture of the City, where citizens love their community. When Studebaker was around, we built beautiful buildings that put South Bend in a situation where there wasn't anyone in the whole United States who didn't touch something that wasn't built or manufactured or distributed out of South Bend. The dynamics and the paradigms they were using then, don't necessarily fit in our time. We need to reestablish the vibrancy that was once here. Nothing ever stays the same. This City will either get better or get worse. Mark McDonnell, stated he owns two (2) businesses at 115 West Colfax Avenue, stated currently his two (2) restaurants are having their best year ever and feel that South Bend is really on a roll. Business operates at a different pace than it did twenty (20) or thirty (30) years ago. We need to move ahead on development. South Bend for a while took an ultra - cautious approach to development and we cannot do that here. Things are happening faster than ever before in this City. We made a huge improvement to our downtown when we passed the Smart Streets initiative and now a lot of things are happening not only in the Central Business District but also across the river. We need more people living downtown and patronizing all the restaurants in the DTSB dining association. He stated he was there for part of the East Bank Plan, the Jefferson Street improvement came from that which lead to some new restaurants developing down there. The speed of development and technology is vastly improving, the iPhone was only invented in 2007. Mr. McDonnell stated that only a couple of years ago Rob Bartels was living in St. Joseph Michigan when he decided to come back to South Bend and live downtown. Martins is committed to developing what everyone has said is so important which is having a grocery store downtown and pharmacy. He stated he is looking to pay off his mortgage out in Granger in the next five (5) years and is tired of mowing the lawn and shoveling the snow. If Mr. Mathews can provide something that is compatible to two (2) dogs he would definitely live in this building. Mr. Mathews does a great job envision what the future of this City should be. Dawn Deats, 1031 East Jefferson, stated he has lived in the East Bank for fourteen (14) years and the Sunnymede Neighborhood for ten (10) years before that. We are starving for amenities which density will bring. The East Bank Plan's main goal was for the neighborhood to be energetic and vibrant which is what we are after. He stated he is always willing to risk someone else's money. 19