Christine Coady Narayanan, CEO of Opportunity Resource Fund, wants to see DSNI improve on the Midtown model in outlying neighborhoods targeted through the partnership. She describes Opportunity Resource Fund as a “character lender,” not one bound by credit profiles.

The Opportunity Resource Fund came into Detroit in 2011. Since then it has loaned about $1.2 million in mortgages with no defaults.

“Midtown invested alternative capital where it was needed,” Narayanan says, “not necessarily where there was return on investment.”