Program Info: Non-Profit Resilient Retrofit Grant pilot program

The program is a City of Vancouver initiative and is administered in partnership with the BC Non-Profit Housing Association (BCNPHA). It is designed to effectively accelerate deep emissions reductions while also supporting the introduction of cooling measures and the implementation of heat pump retrofit projects.

• Reduce emissions and increase resilience with cooling: identify opportunities to replace aging gas heating and domestic hot water systems with new electric heat pumps
• Consider a holistic retrofit package where possible: identify through energy audits, if non-mechanical upgrades can make a strong business case, with minimal tenant disruption
• Provide capital incentives to cover incremental costs
• Coach housing societies through the retrofits from start-to-finish
• Provide post-retrofit support to ensure the new systems are operating and performing as designed and to measure the energy and emissions savings
• Complete measurement & verification of post-retrofit to confirm energy and emission savings
• Develop operator training resources for heat pump technologies to maintain optimal performance throughout the lifetime of the equipment, and
• Develop and disseminate lessons learned through case studies of the buildings that undertake retrofits.

Registered non-profit organizations who are operating affordable housing in Vancouver and are in good standing with the BC Registry Services can submit their Expression of Interest to BCNPHA. Buildings will be selected based on:

• A diversity of building archetypes that are eligible for the relevant upgrades. The program seeks to achieve a representative sample of Vancouver non-profit housing stock.
• Buildings that have space heating and/or domestic hot water equipment/systems that are reaching the end of their useful lifetime and need replacement
• Providers that are interested in the opportunity for heat pump and/or envelope retrofits and motivated to reduce the GHG emissions from their building(s)
• Providers with capacity and/or previous experience undertaking building renovations with tenants in place
• Only one application will be allowed per individual property, max. three per society

This program’s capital incentives will top up to cover up to 100% of the incremental consultant, capital and replacement costs after grants/funds from others have been applied. Incremental capital cost will be calculated using the current code minimum efficiency system that can be installed in Vancouver.

The number of projects receiving funding from this program will depend on a variety of factors, including the types of measures chosen and the size of participating buildings. Additional capital funding streams can be used to leverage the project budget for each participant.

Grants will be paid in the form of a rebate upon completion and verification of the retrofit work phase and the required documentation. Exceptions to this may be requested subject to organizational need.

The following upgrades will be considered:

• Domestic Hot Water system replacements with Heat Pump solutions
• Makeup Air (MUA) system replacements with Heat Pump & Hybrid solutions
• In-suite heat pump additions
• Central heat pump replacements
• Electric panel upgrades, minor envelope improvements, structural reviews etc. to support the above measures
• Complimentary upgrades (e.g. new windows, air sealing, insulation)

The Program does not financially support:

• energy upgrades and/or capital repairs with committed funding that are already planned or under way;
• additions or new construction;
• general interior or exterior work or construction;
• other work deemed inappropriate at the discretion of BCNPHA and/or City of Vancouver;
• or project costs incurred prior to notification of funding approval

Expression of Interest:

April 15 2023

Energy Audits:

Spring 2023

Detailed Energy Studies for selected buildings:

Fall 2023 – Winter 2024

Retrofits completed:

Summer/Fall 2025

M&V and commissioning:

Summer/Fall 2026

Expression of interest

Building energy benchmarking

Shortlisted non-profits will get set up for benchmarking, including energy and GHG emissions analysis and reporting.

Energy audits

Walk-through audits will identify potential low carbon retrofits in buildings and determine eligibility for upgrades. If sufficient opportunity exists, BCNPHA will help provide advice on rebates from this program and other funding sources.

Detailed energy studies

Once a building is accepted into the Program, a detailed energy study will be conducted.

Retrofit implementation and mechanical design

The selected program participants will receive implementation support including detailed design, support with the Request for Proposal (RFP) and bidding process and construction management.

Retrofit installation

The contractors, hired by the non-profit societies complete the retrofits as detailed.

Commissioning and Measurement and Verification (M&V)

1-year of post-retrofit commissioning will be provided to ensure that the building systems are functioning and operating as designed.

Retrofit coaching and ongoing support

BCNPHA will provide start-to-finish assistance to identify and prioritize fuel-switching opportunities, ‘translate’ technical language from engineering, evaluate quotes and equipment options, coordinate site visits, and provide expertise for successful retrofit implementation and ongoing operation. Assistance will also include applying for all utility and non-utility incentives by collecting appropriate information on project energy savings and a detailed breakdown of project costs.

Capacity building and operator training

To assist non-profits in developing and delivering high quality affordable housing to British Columbians, BCNPHA will take learnings from the energy retrofit projects and develop case studies that highlight the opportunities and challenges of low carbon technologies in the non-market housing sector, develop an operator training module for heat pump technologies, and support operators on an ongoing basis to address technical challenges