Homeowners in Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM), NS, can take advantage of municipal financing through the Solar City program to install solar-powered water heating systems, lower their energy bills, and reduce water consumption. The municipality arranged over 300 system installations in the program's first 14 months — more than the rest of Canada that year — and aims to finance 700 systems within the first two years. Designed to be simple and create economies of scale, Solar City improves purchasing power and reliability, and offers quality assurance to citizens. The program includes education, free water conservation retrofits, an optional performance tracking system, and the first city-level solar "energy potential" map in Canada — an online resource that calculates annual solar energy potential for individual homes based on data collected through Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR), a remote sensing technology.
Solar City's pioneering funding mechanism puts a new spin on Local Improvement Charge financing by offering Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) loans to individual homeowners to pay for equipment and installation. The loans are tied to the property and are paid back over time, while homeowners benefit right away from the energy savings. HRM is the first Canadian municipality to employ the PACE user-pay model to create a budget-neutral program that covers administrative and financing costs.
This initiative received support through FCM's Green Municipal Fund (GMF 12028).
Results
Environmental
Economic
Social
10,500 tonne reduction in GHG emissions over the 25-year lifespan of 300 systems
14 million litres of water saved annually in 1,265 homes
Fewer sulphur, NOX and mercury emissions from heating oil or coal-sourced electricity
$14.4 million in energy savings over 25 years ($20,600 per home)
$1.69 million in water savings over 25 years (700 homes)
Four local businesses involved and more than 40 jobs created
Strong community engagement, with over 3,000 interested homeowners
Over 900 attended 10 open houses and a Solar Fiesta information night
More than 1,200 households educated on water conservation
Challenges
The project took two and a half years to launch, during which time there were municipal elections and senior management changes. Delays resulted in challenges with procurement and administration.
There was no blueprint for the program's most innovative aspects, including its unique financing mechanism.
When setting up contracts and managing legal risks, the municipality had to balance taxpayer and community interests (economic and environmental) with homeowner concerns, while keeping the paperwork simple and easy to understand.
Lessons learned
Keep the program as simple as possible for homeowners and use a comprehensive approach that accounts for quality control, achieves economies of scale, and encourages high participation rates.
Engage the public, municipal council and provincial departments early to create a shared program vision.
Develop and implement the program within 18 months to capitalize on momentum and prevent barriers that may arise with an extended timeline.
Want to explore all GMF-funded projects? Check out the Projects Database for a complete overview of funded projects and get inspired by municipalities of all sizes, across Canada.
Residential energy programs overcome barriers to financing retrofits
The City of Toronto's Home Energy Loan Program (HELP) and High-Rise Retrofit Improvement Support Program (Hi-RIS) have won a 2016 FCM Sustainable Communities Award for successfully stimulating energy and water retrofits in privately owned residential buildings. To date the programs have achieved energy savings of 25 per cent and 28 per cent respectively through long-term, low-interest loans to finance energy and water efficiency retrofits.
Read the case study below to learn more about the program results, as well as the challenges and lessons learned that can help your community in planning a similar program.
About the project
Municipal population
Project duration
Total project value
1.8 million
January 2014–December 2016
$20 million capital allocation ($10 million per program)
No cost to municipal taxpayers
Buildings account for about half of Toronto's overall greenhouse gas emissions. To increase energy efficiency in privately owned residential buildings, Toronto is taking advantage of recent changes to Ontario's Local Improvement Charge (LIC) regulations, allowing municipalities to use LICs as loans to finance energy retrofits on private property.
The first programs of their kind in Ontario, the HELP and Hi-RIS programs are innovative financing tools that support energy and water efficiency retrofits on private residential properties. The city leverages its borrowing power to offer low-interest, long-term loans that cover the upfront costs of improvements. Owners repay the city over time through installments on their property tax bill. Loans are attached to the property rather than the owner, so that if a property is sold, the loan transfers to the new owner, along with the energy savings.
HELP is geared toward single-family homeowners, while Hi-RIS operates as part of the city's Tower Renewal Program and focuses on older apartment buildings. Collaboration with Toronto Hydro and Enbridge Gas ensures linkages with existing conservation incentives.
"The programs run through a Local Improvement Charge that allows you to borrow against the future savings and then have it paid back connected to the property rather to the individual, which is key to the programs' success."
— Councillor Mike Layton
Project Highlights
Results
Environmental
Economic
Social
Anticipated average energy use reduction of 25 per cent for HELP and 28 per cent for Hi-RIS buildings
Estimated annual GHG reductions of 4,900 tonnes of eCO2 per year for all projects combined (3 tonnes per HELP participant and 340 tonnes per Hi-RIS project)
Estimated annual electricity savings of 4.8 million kWh and natural gas savings of 2.37 million m3
Lower energy bills for property owners
Average payback of 10 years with an estimated 12 per cent rate of return for owners on funds borrowed
Revenue-neutral, with programs' operating costs covered by funders and user fees
Improved quality and durability of city housing stock
More equitable access to financing for lower-income homeowners
Improved home comfort and quality of life for residents
Owners restricted from passing project costs on to tenants
Challenges
The city needed to work closely with financial institutions to develop a mortgage lender consent process for this new type of financing tool.
Due to longer timelines required for many improvement projects at multi-residential buildings, there is a potential that some property owners may alter the improvements that they implement or fail to complete part of the project after the Property Owner Agreement is executed. Program guidelines are designed to accommodate factors such as changes to improvements, and a protocol has been developed to maintain regular communication with property owners before and after the Property Owner Agreement is signed.
For multi-residential building property owners with larger portfolios, owners may choose not to participate if the interest rate offered by the city is not competitive enough compared to market rates for conventional loans.
Education is required to help people understand this new financing model. As the first municipality in Ontario to use this model, the city cannot point to other examples to demonstrate how it works.
Lessons learned
Clearly identify the target market to position the program successfully and encourage uptake.
Promote the broad range of co-benefits to reach audiences with different interests. For example, some may be most interested in reducing energy bills or improving home comfort, while others could be more concerned with environmental stewardship.
Leverage the communication networks of utilities, local distribution companies, retrofit contractors, energy advisors, equipment manufacturers, community groups, industry associations and realtors, to promote the program widely.
Engage all relevant city departments in setting up the program, to coordinate and streamline its administration and ensure that the program meets all regulatory requirements.
Want to explore all GMF-funded projects? Check out the Projects Database for a complete overview of funded projects and get inspired by municipalities of all sizes, across Canada.
Conducting an efficient tendering process is a key step in managing a successful brownfield redevelopment project. This guide will help Canadian municipalities of all sizes attract, evaluate and select the best suppliers using a fair and transparent selection process.
This guide will help you:
Understand when to use different procurement processes such as a Request for Information, a Request for Qualification and a Request for Proposal (RFP)
Solve common challenges, such as how to promote your request for proposals and how to evaluate bids
Write a strong RFP that will generate quality responses from bidders
The guidebook is designed for municipal staff, such as brownfield coordinators, planners and economic development officers, who are responsible for overseeing brownfield redevelopment in their community.
This free publication is part of a series of guidebooks on brownfield redevelopment, created through FCM's Green Municipal Fund and the Leadership in Brownfield Renewal program.
Small municipality faces its challenges head-on
Minto’s Integrated Strategic Sustainable Community Plan
The urban-rural Town of Minto developed an integrated sustainable community plan to help it meet the challenges of slow population growth and a shortage of jobs. Leaders were also concerned about high energy consumption and the car-oriented way of life. The project team created a plan that would grow the population to an optimum size, make agriculture practices more sustainable, keep retailers in the downtown, diversify businesses into sustainable products, and make the community more walkable. The sustainability plan will strengthen the local economy, improve community health, reduce energy consumption and minimize the town's environmental footprint.
Results
Environmental
Economic
Social
Uses agricultural abundance to feed the town's land, people, and economy.
Builds main streets that support business and civic life.
Creates and retain enterprises that have low environmental impact and provide fulfilling jobs.
Grows to a manageable and sustainable size.
Supports the health and recreational well-being of residents.
Challenges
Provincial funding fell through, resulting in two false starts and the loss of the initial consulting team.
Farming commitments limited participation in the initial community consultation, held in summer.
Shortened project schedule reduced opportunities for community engagement and input.
Lessons learned
Building awareness and community engagement takes time. Make use of social media to build support.
To avoid delays and complications, secure funding before beginning work
Focus groups provided richer information than online surveys.
Gordon Duff
Treasurer
Town of Minto, ON
T. 519-338-2511, ext. 35
Want to explore all GMF-funded projects? Check out the Projects Database for a complete overview of funded projects and get inspired by municipalities of all sizes, across Canada.
The City of Toronto's Home Energy Loan Program (HELP) and High-Rise Retrofit Improvement Support Program (Hi-RIS) have won a 2016 FCM Sustainable Communities Award for successfully stimulating energy and water retrofits in privately owned residential buildings. To date the programs have achieved energy savings of 25 per cent and 28 per cent respectively through long-term, low-interest loans to finance energy and water efficiency retrofits.
Read the case study below to learn more about the program results, as well as the challenges and lessons learned that can help your community in planning a similar program.
About the project
Municipal population
Project duration
Total project value
1.8 million
January 2014–December 2016
$20 million capital allocation ($10 million per program)
No cost to municipal taxpayers
Buildings account for about half of Toronto's overall greenhouse gas emissions. To increase energy efficiency in privately owned residential buildings, Toronto is taking advantage of recent changes to Ontario's Local Improvement Charge (LIC) regulations, allowing municipalities to use LICs as loans to finance energy retrofits on private property.
The first programs of their kind in Ontario, the HELP and Hi-RIS programs are innovative financing tools that support energy and water efficiency retrofits on private residential properties. The city leverages its borrowing power to offer low-interest, long-term loans that cover the upfront costs of improvements. Owners repay the city over time through installments on their property tax bill. Loans are attached to the property rather than the owner, so that if a property is sold, the loan transfers to the new owner, along with the energy savings.
HELP is geared toward single-family homeowners, while Hi-RIS operates as part of the city's Tower Renewal Program and focuses on older apartment buildings. Collaboration with Toronto Hydro and Enbridge Gas ensures linkages with existing conservation incentives.
"The programs run through a Local Improvement Charge that allows you to borrow against the future savings and then have it paid back connected to the property rather to the individual, which is key to the programs' success."
— Councillor Mike Layton
Project Highlights
Results
Environmental
Economic
Social
Anticipated average energy use reduction of 25 per cent for HELP and 28 per cent for Hi-RIS buildings
Estimated annual GHG reductions of 4,900 tonnes of eCO2 per year for all projects combined (3 tonnes per HELP participant and 340 tonnes per Hi-RIS project)
Estimated annual electricity savings of 4.8 million kWh and natural gas savings of 2.37 million m3
Lower energy bills for property owners
Average payback of 10 years with an estimated 12 per cent rate of return for owners on funds borrowed
Revenue-neutral, with programs' operating costs covered by funders and user fees
Improved quality and durability of city housing stock
More equitable access to financing for lower-income homeowners
Improved home comfort and quality of life for residents
Owners restricted from passing project costs on to tenants
Challenges
The city needed to work closely with financial institutions to develop a mortgage lender consent process for this new type of financing tool.
Due to longer timelines required for many improvement projects at multi-residential buildings, there is a potential that some property owners may alter the improvements that they implement or fail to complete part of the project after the Property Owner Agreement is executed. Program guidelines are designed to accommodate factors such as changes to improvements, and a protocol has been developed to maintain regular communication with property owners before and after the Property Owner Agreement is signed.
For multi-residential building property owners with larger portfolios, owners may choose not to participate if the interest rate offered by the city is not competitive enough compared to market rates for conventional loans.
Education is required to help people understand this new financing model. As the first municipality in Ontario to use this model, the city cannot point to other examples to demonstrate how it works.
Lessons learned
Clearly identify the target market to position the program successfully and encourage uptake.
Promote the broad range of co-benefits to reach audiences with different interests. For example, some may be most interested in reducing energy bills or improving home comfort, while others could be more concerned with environmental stewardship.
Leverage the communication networks of utilities, local distribution companies, retrofit contractors, energy advisors, equipment manufacturers, community groups, industry associations and realtors, to promote the program widely.
Engage all relevant city departments in setting up the program, to coordinate and streamline its administration and ensure that the program meets all regulatory requirements.
Want to explore all GMF-funded projects? Check out the Projects Database for a complete overview of funded projects and get inspired by municipalities of all sizes, across Canada.
Watch this webinar to discover options and strategies for using green stormwater infrastructure — or low impact development (LID) — in your community. You’ll hear experts explain how LID provides an effective, affordable solution to the challenges of conventional grey stormwater infrastructure.
This session touches on case studies from cities in North America. Featured success stories include the:
City of Mississauga’s stormwater credits and incentives program
City of Montreal’s use of green stormwater infrastructure in parks, parking lots and streetscapes
You’ll learn how:
Policies and programs can be used by Canadian municipalities to implement green stormwater infrastructure across the landscape.
Municipal stormwater charges can incent and enable LID at both the property and municipal level.
To incorporate green stormwater best management practices, such as bioswales and bioretention, into designing urban parks, streets and parking lots.
Speakers
Clifford Maynes, Executive Director, Green Communities Canada, Peterborough, ON
Dr. Victoria Kramkowski, Coordinator, Stormwater Charge Program, City of Mississauga, ON
Mélanie Glorieux, Project Director and Associate, Groupe Rousseau Lefebvre, Montreal, QC
Webinars
Community wide Implementation of Green Stormwater Infrastructure – Clifford Mayne
