Seven corporations with major operations in Detroit are contributing $5 million each to the city's neighborhood development fund as part of the Duggan administration's strategy to improve commercial corridors to attract investors.

American Axle & Manufacturing, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, Chemical Bank, Fifth Third Bank, Flagstar Bank, Huntington Bank and the Penske Corp. have committed a combined $35 million toward Mayor Mike Duggan's Strategic Neighborhood Fund.

The corporate philanthropy is expected to leverage $70 million in private investment over the next five years, Duggan said.

"We believe this is the largest single corporate donation for neighborhood redevelopment in the city's history," Duggan said Monday morning at an announcement event at Artist Village in the Old Redford neighborhood on Detroit's northwest side.

The Kresge Foundation previously donated $15 million to the Strategic Neighborhood Fund.

The combined $50 million is halfway to Duggan's goal of raising $100 million in private donations for the fund, which is used to fund infrastructure improvements in neighborhoods, such as streetscapes, parks, single-family homes and affordable higher-density housing.

"This is a key moment in our city's history," Chemical Bank Chairman Gary Torgow said.

Torgow, whose Midland-based bank announced in July it will build a new headquarters building downtown, had a leading role in getting other corporate leaders to contribute to the neighborhoods fund.

Duggan has set a goal of raising the remaining $50 million by the end of 2019.

"The fact we can now contribute to this revitalization of the neighborhoods of the city of Detroit is awesome," said Dan Loepp, CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, who grew up on Detroit's east side.

The fund also is used as gap financing and grants for new business startups in select commercial corridors in Detroit.

Duggan is pairing the corporate donations with $125 million in streetscape improvements the city has financed with Detroit's share of increased road funding from the state of Michigan.

The corporate donations, spread over five years, will be paired with specific neighborhood projects, with the city working with established residential groups, Duggan said.

"We're going to work that out with the neighborhoods," Duggan told reporters. "Some neighborhoods may want to pair with a corporate partner for the whole neighborhood, some neighborhoods might want to do it on a project-by-project basis."