“Putting the world online one property at a time.”

Investment Amount : $50,000 | Year : 2014 | Sector : Urban Revitalization | City : Detroit, MI

The Challenge: Blight and its associated impact on communities is a national problem with huge implications in many urban markets. The scale of the problem necessitates identifying efficient methods of gathering and managing disparate information. The first step in blight reduction is obtaining better data.  As recently as 2009 in Detroit, the magnitude and cost to reduce the problem was unknown to the government, much less the general public, since information on blighted properties was not available online.

The Innovation: Traditional data visualization tools such as ArcGIS help catalog data but do not include a mechanism for community engagement or real-time updates on individualized properties.  Through Loveland’s Blexting app, property data can be easily collected with smartphones/tablets and shared through a centralized platform.  Loveland first started by working to make existing data available online and to create a platform that was easy to use and leverage in decision-making. Since then, Loveland’s technology platforms have enabled municipalities, philanthropic organizations, and public-private partnerships to address blight in a more comprehensive and community-focused method than before.  Using Loveland’s technology, the City of Detroit has completed the first city-wide blight survey.  The dynamic nature of the product allows ongoing, user-generated updating to effectively identify the constantly changing situation on the ground.

The Impact: SVF’s $50,000 investment closed in September 2014 as part of Loveland’s Series AA round of financing, which will help Loveland expand to new cities and scale its product-line further.