SOUTH BEND — The South Bend Cubs’ Four Winds Field at Coveleski Stadium has seen $48 million in renovations over the past 17 months in preparation for Opening Day on Friday, April 3.
The most notable change fans will see as they file in Opening Day is a new upper level of seating, which now allows the stadium to seat nearly 10,500 people. In 2024, a single game brought over 8,000 fans, according to South Bend Cubs owner Andrew Berlin.
“So, for us, it’s just creating a great environment here, and that’s why we’ve done a lot of the improvements over the years — we kind of created little community gathering points,” Cubs president Joe Hart said. “You have the tiki hut, you have the fun zone, the splashpad.
“There’s so many fun unique areas in the ballpark that we don’t want you to come and just sit in your seat for two and a half hours. We want you to mingle and enjoy and socialize.”
Increased seating capacity also allows for other events to happen year-round, such as large concerts or other events.
In the next three months, Four Winds Field will host Killswitch Engage, who will headline “Full Metal Sunday” on Sunday, June 7, and the Indiana Mac and Cheese Festival, which will be making a trip to South Bend on Saturday, May 23.
What else is new?
Although a new and upcoming events building positioned near the Cubs Den memorabilia store won’t be ready in time for Opening Day, fans can expect to see completed construction by early May.
“The second floor will have a new indoor event space ballroom; essentially, it’ll hold 250 people, so we’re going to be able to be a business that can operate year-round,” Hart said. “Our plan is to utilize that on non-game days, too.”
The third floor will hold new office spaces for Cubs employees as well as a rooftop bar area for game days, Hart said.
Come Opening Day, Shamrocks Sports Bar will likely be open to customers. The bar is just outside the center field gate at The Ivy at Berlin Place apartments directly across from La Esperanza. La Esperanza is one of South Bend’s oldest Mexican-American restaurants. It moved to The Ivy in early 2025.
“We’ve seen a lot more activity happening not just here at the ballpark but within a three-mile radius, and that’s been the fun part,” Hart said. “We wanted to be a catalyst, and now you’re starting to see that pay off.
“It’s truly an economic benefit for the entire community.”
During the game, those who may have blinked can rewatch a play on the two new replay systems.
“When you’re watching it on TV, you always get those replays, but now you’ll be able to see different angles, you know, hyper-mode, just being able to really give that fan experience a much larger appeal, too,” said Chris Hagstrom-Jones, assistant general manager of Cubs marketing and media.
Where did renovations money come from?
The city owns Four Winds Field, but according to Berlin, he has donated $32 million of his own money into improvements and developments in and around the stadium.
In May 2023, then-Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb signed an amended Senate Bill 326. The bill allows for an annual total of $5 million in captured taxes to be retained within South Bend. The first $2.5 million captured is to be used for capital improvements to city facilities and professional sports franchises. The remaining $2.5 million is sent to the city and is dedicated to specific uses.
The bill was originally brought to the Indiana Legislature in 2021 and was passed. It allowed a total of $2.5 million to be captured.
“Those taxes that are paid would normally go to Indianapolis to the general coffers of the state,” Berlin said during a presentation to the Common Council on Monday, Feb. 23. “What we were able to do, we were able to get legislation passed that captured that income tax and sales tax paid here in South Bend, to keep it in South Bend, for the benefit of South Bend, to invest in South Bend so it never made it to Indianapolis.”
Berlin said during his presentation to the Common Council that the money being collected has helped make improvements at the Morris Performing Arts Center, Century Center and Potawatomi Zoo.
Keeping up with the fans
There are 25 touch points fans will encounter as they move through the stadium, said Berlin, who aims to cater to all five senses: smell, touch, taste, sight and hearing.
One major touch point Berlin emphasized is cleanliness. After every inning, tuxedo-wearing crews sweep and mop, even scrubbing the porcelain toilets with toothbrushes.
An hour and a half before gates open, crews mow the field in hopes of wafting incoming fans with the smell of fresh-cut grass.
Stu and Ivy, mascots for the South Bend Cubs, wear cotton candy perfume. According to Berlin, the kids and moms love it.
Fan feedback, including from an annual end-of-season survey, has been a major influence on ballpark decisions, Hagstrom-Jones said, and determines how successful the Cubs are.
“You can’t grow without feedback,” he said. “So, we’ll be able to get a good judge of our fans when they say, ‘Hey, we love this’ or ‘Hey, I love this idea. Can you expand on that?’ or ‘Hey, keep doing “Star Wars” night,’ or whatever it might be. That’s where I see our success is.”
The feedback from surveys even allows them to tailor park preparations to the wants of fans, Berlin said.
“In the surveys, moms make the decision to come here more often than the fathers,” he said. “And so, if that’s the case, what are they most interested in?
“Well, they’re interested in cleanliness. They’re interested in the quality of the food. Are the kids having a good time? Are they safe and are the bathrooms clean?”
Opening Day celebrations have been kept secret, but Berlin promised good things ahead at the ballpark.
Where can I park?
With the increased seating capacity and new developments around the ballpark sitting on former parking spaces, one concern fans may have is where will they be able to park. Berlin says there is ample parking to support 10,000 or more people within a 10-minute walk of the ballpark.
There are a few options near the ballpark, including the main lots at the park, the Studebaker lot on South Lafayette Boulevard and surrounding street parking.
Parking lots D, E, F and G will be available for every game and lot C is available for all games except those with a fireworks show. For Friday, Saturday and Sunday games, the Studebaker lot at 635 S. Lafayette Blvd. will be available with a shuttle service before, after and during the game.
Lot A is dedicated to fans with tickets in the upper level suites, while lots B and I are reserved for fans with Premium Advance Parking. Parking in those lots is limited and is reserved up to 30 minutes after the scheduled first pitch for $15. To reserve parking ahead of time, purchase online.
“We have golf carts collecting people who have trouble walking,” Berlin said. “So we’re collecting people off the sidewalks and parking lots for people who need some assistance.”
Hart spoke of future options as the South Bend Cubs continue to grow and current avalible lots are no longer capable of supporting the crowd. Those possible options included a shuttle service partnership with the city so fans can park at the lots downtown or even a “cottage industry” where businesses near the ballpark could open up their lots.
An alternative option to parking could be the South Bend Transpo bus, which costs a cash fee of $1 or a day pass of $3. There are at least 17 different routes. The Transpo bus transfer center is a six-minute walk from the ballpark. A map of the different routes and fares is online.
“We smile a little bit when we have this conversation,” Berlin said, “because never in a million years did we think we we’re going to have a problem with parking.”
Email Tribune staff writer Juliane Balog at jbalog@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Four Winds Field sees millions in renovations ahead of Opening Day
Reporting by Juliane Balog , South Bend Tribune / South Bend Tribune
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