Alberta municipalities are improving community buildings with practical, energy-efficient upgrades that reduce costs, cut emissions and extend service life.
Responsible for 60% of the province’s public infrastructure, municipalities are using support from the Green Municipal Fund (GMF) to upgrade high-use buildings and plan for long-term energy savings. This toolkit shares real-world examples and recommendations to guide your next steps—whether you’re just getting started or ready to implement improvements.
Energy efficiency upgrades and asset management
Fountain Park Recreation Centre St. Albert, Alberta (approx. 72,000 population)
During recent renovations, the City of St. Albert combined necessary life-cycle repairs with energy-efficiency upgrades at Fountain Park Recreation Centre, supported by funding from GMF’s Community Buildings Retrofit initiative.
Explore lessons learned from this large-scale project:
Measuring energy consumption in recreation facilities
Canmore Recreation Centre Canmore, Alberta (approx. 17, 792 population)
The Town of Canmore installed a real-time energy monitoring system at its recreation centre to track power usage, identify efficiency opportunities and support ongoing improvements in building performance.
Find recommendations for energy monitoring projects:
Small municipalities looking to revitalize their communities, renew aging infrastructure and attract residents and businesses have a valuable opportunity: upgrading community buildings with energy retrofits. These projects not only improve facilities but also help reduce emissions and energy costs.
Here, we share examples of four small municipalities in Alberta that are undertaking projects supported by GMF to reduce emissions and lower costs while also renewing aging assets and making their communities more vibrant and resilient.
How the Town of High Level timed facility retrofits with needed repairs
The location: The Town of High Level is a growing community in northern Alberta whose nearly 4,000 residents enjoy excellent community facilities and services.
The project: A heat exchanger in the community pool had suffered a major breakdown. Needing to make repairs, the Town decided to use this unfortunate situation as an opportunity to make lasting change. With GMF funding, the Town of High Level completed a Green Buildings Pathway feasibility study on several high-use community buildings, including:
Town Hall (the town administration building, with some recreation services and the municipal library)
High Level Municipal Library
Town Hall Museum – McKenzie Crossroads Museum and Visitor Centre
Airport
Water treatment plant
R.E. Walter Memorial Pool
The results: The feasibility study identified many emissions- and cost-saving opportunities such as reducing boiler set points, electrifying gas-fired equipment and purchasing heat pumps. The completion of this feasibility study will help inform organizational decision-making and makes the Town of High Level eligible to apply for funding through GMF’s Community Buildings Retrofit initiative.
How the Town of Provost used new light fixtures to reduce energy costs by more than $15,000
The location: With roots in the agricultural and energy sectors, the Town of Provost is home to nearly 2,000 residents and located just west of Alberta’s border with Saskatchewan.
The project: Serving the Town of Provost and surrounding area, the Crescent Point Place Regional Activity Centre is a municipally owned multiplex facility that includes an indoor arena space as well as an outdoor swimming pool.
With support from GMF, the Town of Provost installed a building monitoring system to better understand the facility’s energy use. The data that was collected guided decisions on which energy-saving measures to implement.
The results: The lighting retrofit project included replacing 620 light fixtures with an equivalent number of LED fixtures. The new LED lamps provide improved lighting at a much lower wattage, reducing electricity consumption. The lighting retrofit resulted in a reduction of 68 tCO2e/year and an annual energy cost savings of $15,411.62. Greenhouse gas emissions were reduced by 45 percent from the existing system and 9 percent facility-wide. This project was funded by the Government of Alberta through the Municipal Climate Change Action Centre’s Recreation Energy Conservation Program.
How the Town of Two Hills separated the work into three phases
The location: The gateway to the Lakeland region, the Town of Two Hills is a community of approximately 1,400 people nestled in an agricultural area, offering a small-town lifestyle near the City of Edmonton.
The project: Seeking a clearer picture of energy consumption data from its facilities, the Town of Two Hills received GMF funding for a multiphase project. Phase 1 is complete and phases 2 and 3 are expected to take place in upcoming years.
Phase 1 | Monitoring system: First, the Town installed a building monitoring system with energy management software integration. The system produced live energy consumption data from each site.
Phase 2 | Staff training: Staff will be trained by facilities operators to better understand the system and how to utilize the data proactively to identify energy-saving opportunities and reduce future operations and maintenance costs.
Phase 3 | Data-informed decision-making: The Town will conduct ongoing evaluation of the system, with the public works foreman organizing regular staff meetings to discuss the facility data and identify emissions-reduction and cost-saving opportunities.
How the Village of Chauvin is making data-driven decisions and planning for future opportunities
The location: The Village of Chauvin is home to approximately 330 residents. Located south of the City of Lloydminster, Chauvin and the surrounding area contribute to Alberta’s agricultural sector and the region’s oil and gas production and distribution.
The project: Located in the Village of Chauvin, the Repsol Community Centre is a gathering space that includes a community hall, arena and curling rink. With GMF funding, the Village will install a building energy monitoring system to gather accurate and ongoing energy consumption data.
The results: With this knowledge in hand, the municipality can identify the most impactful energy conservation measures. The system will also enable the Village to evaluate the impact of these measures over time. Once it is installed, costs to operate and maintain the system will be minimal, enabling the municipality to monitor the facility over the long term and identify future opportunities to reduce energy usage.
Recommendations
For small communities looking to make their community buildings more energy efficient.
Develop a roadmap
Creating a plan is essential to guide community building retrofits. A roadmap could include:
baseline information about current energy consumption
key objectives such as energy savings, emissions reduction and increased occupant comfort
available funding opportunities from sources such as GMF’s Community Buildings Retrofit initiative and MCCAC
implementation details including timelines, project leads and stakeholder engagement
Collaborate with partners
Collaboration can help communities overcome capacity constraints, improve long-term sustainability goals and secure funding more effectively by:
working with neighbouring municipalities
leveraging regional networks such as municipal associations and regional economic development organizations
engaging with private sector organizations such as energy management companies and local contractors to gain expertise
partnering with academic institutions for research, feasibility studies and student-led projects
Increase staff skills and resources
Stay informed about best practices and funding opportunities to make informed decisions around building retrofits. This can be done by:
attending webinars and workshops offered by industry experts and associations
engaging in peer learning events to hear what other municipalities are working on
assigning a team member to track funding opportunities and best practices
Urban forestry projects thrive when communities come together and contribute. If your municipality is planning an urban forestry project and you are looking for practical tools to involve your community in a meaningful and inclusive way, read our tip sheet on Integrating Community Engagement into Urban Forestry that outlines clear, actionable steps to strengthen your engagement strategy.
This resource is designed to help your municipality build support for tree planting initiatives. From early planning to funding applications, it offers guidance to create inclusive projects that reflect the voices in your community.
You’ll learn how to:
Identify and engage local groups, Indigenous communities and other stakeholders.
Design inclusive engagement strategies that reduce barriers and promote equity.
Apply best practices to improve participation, especially in underrepresented groups.
Prepare funding applications that clearly demonstrate your community engagement process.
This resource was created in partnership by Tree Canada and FCM’s Green Municipal Fund (GMF) for the Growing Canada’s Community Canopies initiative, which is delivered by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and funded by the Government of Canada
Webinar recording: Develop an urban forest management plan for your community
From vision to action—learn about urban forest management plans and their numerous benefits.
TREES
Attachment type: File
Learn how an urban forest management plan can strengthen your community.
Urban forest management plans are critical to the resilience of trees, and trees are critical to the resilience of communities. Learn from experts and from municipal leaders who have developed an urban forest management plan to discover the benefits they bring to local communities and why to build your own.
Watching this webinar will help you:
Learn what benefits an urban forest management plan can offer to your community.
Determine what makes a strong plan, including the role of community engagement and data collection.
Consider how to ensure your plan is suited to your local needs and builds resilience to climate change.
Receive resources, tools and networks you can rely on to increase your capacity.
This webinar was created in partnership by Tree Canada and FCM’s Green Municipal Fund for the Growing Canada’s Community Canopies initiative, which is delivered by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and funded by the Government of Canada.
Webinar recording: Climate-resilient buildings: Tools and insights for municipalities
Explore tools and expert insights for climate-resilient buildings
Climate hazards are pushing infrastructure to its limits, but practical building design choices can reduce those risks. This webinar showcased tools that support the design and upgrade of climate-resilient buildings. Watch the webinar recording to discover practical insights and next steps to apply in your own community.
Whether you’re just beginning your municipality’s adaptation journey or looking to advance existing projects, this session will provide practical insights to support your next steps.
Speakers:
Lucas Coletta, Senior Engineer, Natural Resources Canada
Devin Causley, Senior Policy Analyst, Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada
Pouriya Jafarpur, Physical Science Officer, Canadian Centre for Climate Services, Environment and Climate Change Canada
Sharmalene Mendis-Millard, Director, Partners for Action, University of Waterloo
Resources discussed in the webinar (in order of presentation):
