Eighteen Minneapolis business groups have been granted a total of $580,000 to help promote business districts throughout the city with technical assistance, such as branding and marketing, merchandising, business recruitment and design services.

The City Council hopes the Great Streets Business District Support Program will "support a range of activities that strengthen and support neighborhood businesses districts."

Groups getting the funding are:

• African Development Center: $50,000 for technical assistance, business planning, workshops on bookkeeping and accounting. Area: Cedar Riverside LRT area; Franklin Ave.; East lake; Midtown Lake; West Lake; Nicollet Ave.; Central Ave.
• Catalyst Community Partners: $50,000 for business development, retail recruitment, site development, retail recruitment and messaging materials. Area: West Broadway
• Elliot Park Neighborhood Inc.: $10,000 for tenant recruitment, redevelopment strategy, and pitch packet for investors. Area: Chicago Ave.
• Latino Economic Development Center: $50,000 for technical assistance. Area: Midtown; East Lake Street; Central Ave.
• Metropolitan Consortium of Community Developers: $15,000 for technical assistance, business district capacity building. Area: 38th St. and Chicago.
• Metropolitan Economic Development Association: $45,000 for business technical assistance. Area: West Broadway.
• Native American Community Development Institute: $40,000 for corridor branding and analysis and design, marketing materials, and business directory. Area: Franklin Ave.; Franklin Ave. LRT.
• Neighborhood Development Center/Midtown Global Market: $40,000 for business technical assistance and marketing. Area: Midtown Lake St. (Midtown Global Market); Midtown LRT Station; Chicago and Lake St. Activity Center.
• Nicollet East Harriet Business Association: $40,000 for marketing and branding. Area: 38th St. and Nicollet; 43rd St. and Nicollet; 46th St. and Nicollet; 48th St. and Nicollet; 38th St. and Grand; 36th St. and Lyndale; 40th St. and Lyndale; 36th St. and Bryant; 46th St. and Bryant.
• Northeast CDC/Northeast Chamber of Commerce: $10,000 for outreach to businesses, referral to technical assistance services. Area: 13th Ave. NE and University Ave. NE; 22nd Ave. NE and Johnson St. NE; 29th Ave. NE and Johnson St. NE; 37th St. NE and Central Ave. NE; Lowry Ave. NE and Marshall St. NE; Lowry Ave. NE and University Ave. NE; Central Ave.
• PEACE Foundation: $10,000 to support the north side event FLOW. Area: West Broadway.
• Seward Redesign: $22,000 to develop a tenant recruitment packet, recruit businesses, direct work with property owners. Area: Franklin Ave. (LRT to river); Franklin Ave LRT (east side).
• Seward Redesign with SENA: $42,900 for business recruitment, encouraging investment, business organizing, and branding. Area: 38th St. LRT; 46t St. LRT; 28th Ave. & 42nd St.; Cedar & 42nd St.; Cedar and Minnehaha.
• Sheridan Neighborhood Organization: $20,000 for branding and event production. Area: 13th Ave. NE and University Ave. NE.
• Uptown Association: $24,975 (challenge grant) for branding, development of marketing materials including brochures, website, banners. Area: West Lake St., Lake and Hennepin; Lyndale Ave.
• Victory Neighborhood Association: $20,000 for marketing and branding. Area: 44th St. and Penn Ave. N.; 42nd St. and Thomas Ave. N.
• West Bank Business Association: $50,000 for public safety activities, branding, marketing, and special events. Area: Cedar Riverside LRT area; Cedar; Riverside.
• West Broadway Coalition: $38,300 for coordinating street cleaning, community clean-up events, Adopt-A-Block, and Winter Carnival. Area: West Broadway.