Federal funding will help Barrie and other communities retrofit their buildings to help with energy efficiency.
On Monday, Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson and Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) president Scott Pearce announced more than $900,000 will be invested through the Green Municipal Fund’s Community Buildings Retrofit initiative for six feasibility studies.
The government says the funding will help cities and towns across Ontario find the best approach to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions at municipally owned buildings.
Barrie will receive $200,000 to study greenhouse gas emission reduction measures for eight municipal facilities, which account for 60 per cent of the city’s building-related emissions. The study will consider unique aspects of each building, the potential for renewable energy, replacing equipment, and capital planning to identify "optimal reduction pathways."
Adam McMullin, Barrie's manager of energy, said the eight buildings that will benefit from the funding are city hall on Collier Street, the MacLaren Art Centre on Mulcaster Street, the Barrie Public Library's downtown branch on Worsley Street, the East Bayfield Community Centre on Livingstone Street, the Peggy Hill Team Community Centre on Mapleton Avenue, the Surface Water Treatment Plant on Big Bay Point Road, the Barrie Fire and Emergency Service headquarters on Dunlop Street West, and the Barrie Simcoe Emergency Services Campus on Fairview Road.
“The grant covers 80 per cent of the total project cost, which includes individual net-zero studies for each building. These studies vary in cost depending upon the size and complexity of the facility,” McMullin said.
McMullin said that, upon completion of the studies, which is anticipated to be in July 2023, the city will provide a final report to FCM for approval. The release of the grant funding is expected in the fourth quarter of this year.
The City of Orillia receives $98,360 to look at reducing greenhouse gas emissions at five municipally owned buildings, including City Centre, the public library, Fire Hall No. 2, and the wastewater treatment centre. The study will examine innovative technologies new to the city, such as geothermal heat pumps and ice plant heat recovery.
The Community Buildings Retrofit initiative is part of a $950 million federal investment in FCM’s Green Municipal Fund (GMF) and is designed to scale up energy efficiency and lower emissions across Canada.
GMF, which is administered by FCM and funded through an endowment by the federal government, helps local partners switch to sustainable practices more quickly by giving them the tools they need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and build sustainable, prosperous communities.
