Green Municipal Fund’s Community Buildings Retrofit Initiative

The Canadian government has committed to making communities more environmentally sustainable and is making progress towards that goal through programs such as the Green Municipal Fund (GMF). The GMF is funded by the Government of Canada and is designed to support local municipalities in their mission to become more environmental conscious.

“Local governments influence half of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions. That means local action is critical. With support from the Green Municipal Fund, this is happening: municipalities of all sizes are implementing smart low-carbon solutions. Empowering this local expertise is vital to meeting Canada’s climate goals. When orders of government work together to reduce emissions, we’re building more resilient communities.”

-Joanne Vanderheyden – President, Federation of Canadian Municipalities

The GMF has introduced a new stream of government funding called the Community Buildings Retrofit (CBR) and is specifically designed to improve existing public buildings that are currently not achieving desired sustainability goals. This new stream will accompany their existing programs: the Community Efficiency Financing (CEF) and the Sustainable Affordable Housing (SAH).

“FCM’s Community Buildings Retrofit (CBR) initiative helps to optimize the energy performance and reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of community buildings owned by municipalities and not-for-profit organizations.”

-Federation of Canadian Municipalities

Funding Amount

The Community Buildings Retrofit (CBR) stream offers a variety of funding paths depending on project focus:

• Community Building, Monitoring, and Analysis Grant: Up to 80% of eligible costs for up to a maximum of $25,000 as non-repayable funding;
• Community Building Recommissioning Grant: Up to 60% of eligible costs for up to a maximum of $55,000 as non-repayable funding;
• GHG Reduction Pathway Feasibility Studies Grant: Up to 80% of eligible costs for up to a maximum of $65,000 for a single building or up to $200,000 per portfolio of buildings as non-repayable funding;
• GHG Impact Retrofit Capital Projects Grant and Loan: Combined grant and repayable funding of up to 80% of eligible costs up to a maximum of $5 million per project (up to 25% as grant, remainder as loan); and
• GHG Reduction Pathway Retrofit Capital Projects: Combined grant and repayable funding of up to 80% of eligible costs up to a maximum of $5 million per project (up to 25% as grant, remainder as loan).

Eligible Applicants

Applicants for the CBR stream may be eligible if they are Canadian municipal governments or municipal partners such as private sector entities, Indigenous communities, and more. To learn more about applicant eligibility, review the Green Municipal Fund’s program page.

Project Eligibility

• Community Building, Monitoring, and Analysis Projects: To allow for monitoring systems to measure and report on energy consumption over time;
• Community Building Recommissioning Projects: Reduce whole-building energy consumptions by up to 15%;
• GHG Reduction Pathway Feasibility Studies: Reduce GHG outputs and energy consumptions of recreational and cultural facilities;
• Capital Project – GHG Impact Retrofit: Achieve a minimum of 30% GHG reduction from current levels; and
• Capital Project – GHG Reduction Pathway Retrofit: Achieve 50% GHG reductions for recreational and cultural facilities in less than 10 years, with 80% GHG reductions in the next 20 years.

Program Timelines

The Green Municipal Fund’s Community Buildings Retrofit stream has an open intake for applications until funding is fully committed.

Learn More About Government Funding for Municipalities

If you are interested in learning more about the Green Municipality Fund’s streams, read more about the programs on this comprehensive program page. Moreover, the Canadian government offers more programs for municipalities, covering a wide breadth of project focuses and funding opportunities.

Government funding applications can be complex and time consuming, so please take some time to review this free resource which outlines how to navigate the government funding process. Should you have any questions regarding the process or which programs may be right for you, we recommend you get in touch with a professional today.