SOUTH BEND, Ind. — It’s been well over a year since Portage Manor shut down, with no plans for the former mental health and disability facility, or the more than 100 acres of land it sits on.
Now, the county is looking for public input. Commissioner Derek Dieter and Steve Sass with Indiana Nature LLC invited the public to the manor Tuesday, taking more than 50 community members on a hike around the land, while presenting the findings of an ecological study done on the area by Sass.
“This is probably the last time we’re ever going to see this much space in South Bend in an urban/suburban area repurposed. We have over 110 acres of open land here that is, could go a number of different ways with it. We could see development here, we could see remaining open habitat and to have the public come out, learn about the property and be able to express their opinions about what they would like to see done with this public land was, is an important step, an important part of the process,” said Sass…