Cultural Facilities Fund (Major Capital Projects)

The final deadline for 2024 is Wednesday, September 25th at 4:00 pm

The City only accepts complete applications. The application must be filled out and submitted through our Portal

An application is considered complete when all required documentation, as per the Contents of your Application section below, is submitted before the deadline. Only applications and documents received by the deadline will be accepted and assessed. Results will be communicated via e-mail

The application for this program will go live on Wednesday, July 25 at 4 pm.

Before you begin drafting your application, you must contact Thomas Radford, Cultural Developer at thomas.radford@ottawa.ca. This process is mandatory and should start at least two weeks before the deadline for application submission to the City. The Cultural Developer will quickly determine if your organization and project are eligible for this funding program. Only eligible applications will move through the assessment process.

The City only accepts complete applications. The application must be filled out and submitted through our Portal.

The Cultural Facilities Fund is designed to improve cultural spaces and facilities across the City of Ottawa. This program provides cultural organizations with funds for major capital projects, i.e., renovation, construction, restoration projects, purchase of specialized equipment with costs exceeding $60,000, and capital studies (prefeasibility and feasibility).

The Cultural Facilities Fund (Major Capital Projects) provides funding to cultural organizations that are eligible to apply, contributing up to twenty-five percent (25%) of total eligible costs for renovation, construction, restoration projects or purchase of specialized equipment, fifty percent (50%) for feasibility studies and ninety percent (90%) for prefeasibility studies. The Fund will not cover operating costs related to maintenance, repair, management, or administration.

Eligible projects in this program

• Pre-feasibility studies for new projects over $60,000
• Feasibility studies for more advanced projects costing more than $200,000
• Purchase of specialized equipment needed for programming
• Renovation, restoration or construction projects related to major capital assets

Who is eligible

• Be a local, incorporated, not-for-profit cultural organization whose mandate relates to the arts, festivals, fairs or heritage
• Have been in existence for at least three (3) years in its present discipline
• For projects over $100,000, the organization must have received operating funding in the past three (3) years from the City of Ottawa Cultural Funding Support Unit
• Have an active Ottawa-based Board of Directors (with most Directors being residents of the City of Ottawa) OR an Indigenous governing body
• Be based in Ottawa and serve primarily the Ottawa community or be located in the Algonquins of Pikwakanagan or Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg First Nation communities
• Own a local cultural facility or be a tenant of one with a lease of at least five (5) years

What is eligible

• Costs related to independent professionals hired for prefeasibility or feasibility studies
• Costs related to renovating, constructing or restoring a local cultural facility with the goal of improving performances, rehearsals, presentations, exhibitions, programming and/or administrative spaces; and/or improving public access
• Costs of acquiring a local cultural facility that provides space for cultural programming (arts, heritage, festivals, fairs) and public access
• Costs of specialized equipment related to a major capital project, e.g., lighting system, ventilation system, computer equipment required for cultural programming, movable walls system, floor cover/sprung flooring for dance, mobile stage, storage or large printer

* Before you begin drafting your application, you must contact Thomas Radford, Cultural Developer at thomas.radford@ottawa.ca. This process is mandatory and should start at least two weeks prior to the deadline for application submission to the City.

Meeting all program eligibility requirements does not guarantee funding.

How the City decides which projects to support

The City cannot contribute financially to all eligible projects. In 2024, the budget for the September 25th deadline is $250,000. Decisions will be made through a competitive process that is based on the merit and needs of each project and each applicant.

Assessment of applications will be carried out by an Assessment Committee comprised of one architect or engineer, one urban planner or person with experience managing projects that involve the construction of cultural facilities, and one person from the arts, festivals heritage and cultural community. Stringent conflict of interest guidelines are in place to ensure that there is no conflict of interest between Assessment Committee members and applicants or their projects.

Decisions are final and are not subject to review. Unsuccessful applicants may re-apply to the program the following year with the same project. Meeting all the program’s eligibility requirements does not guarantee that a project will be funded by the City of Ottawa.

Unsuccessful applicants should not conclude that their project received a negative assessment. All major capital grants are awarded subject to the availability of municipal funds

Criteria used by the Assessment Committee

Funding applications for major capital development projects are assessed according to the criteria listed below. Please note that the need for financial support is also taken into consideration.

Project merit will be positively assessed if the project:

• Helps the organization to better fulfill its mandate
• Is considered a priority by the local cultural community
• Supports local cultural activity and creatives
• Demonstrates merit of proposed professional independent consultants and other professionals to be contracted

The community impact of the project will be positively assessed if the project:

• Improves access and connection to the community and neighbourhood
• Promotes local creation, production and presentation
• Supports facilities that provide public access and opportunities for residents

The effectiveness of the organization will be positively assessed if it:

• Has strong planning and evaluation mechanisms in place
• Is well-managed
• Is financially responsible
• Demonstrates good governance practice
• Has a realistic project budget with diverse revenue streams, and realistic cash flow projections
• Has the skills and means required to implement the project
• Has solid planning and leadership in place for project management, and for subsequent operation and maintenance

Thomas.radford@ottawa.caThe City only accepts complete applications.

The application must be filled out and submitted through our Portal.

The following information must be included in the application:

Information about your Organization

• Organization name, mailing address, telephone number, e-mail address, name and title of the contact person
• Board of Director or Indigenous Governing Body membership list, including name, address, title, occupation and email address of each Board Member
• List of professional staff members who lead and/or manage the organization, including name, title and brief curriculum vitae
• Copy of the organization’s articles of incorporation if not already filed with the Cultural Funding Support Unit
• Signed copy of Board of Directors or Indigenous Governing Body meeting minutes that include a motion to undertake the major capital development project and to apply for City funding
• Amount of funding requested from the Cultural Facilities Fund (Major Capital Projects)
• Mandate and a brief history of the organization (maximum 750 words)
• Complete list of all capital, operating and project funding received from the City of Ottawa over the past five (5) years, including the date, amount and purpose of funds
• Audited financial statement or Treasurer’s Report from your organization’s last completed fiscal year

Information about your actual Cultural Facility or Space

• Name and address of the cultural facility or space
• Size of the cultural facility in square feet or square meters (actual size and proposed size)
• Description of the use and/or purpose of the cultural facility or space (maximum 750 words)
• Information indicating whether the facility is a building or property designated under the Ontario Heritage Act
• Facility lease or proof of ownership; in the case of a leased facility, indicate the lease expiry date and include signed documentation demonstrating landlord agreement with all aspects of your capital project

Information about your Cultural Capital Project

• Description of proposed cultural capital project (maximum 1,500 words) that includes the following information:*
  • Reasons for undertaking the project
  • How the project will benefit the organization, cultural community and residents of Ottawa;
  • Who will manage the capital project?
  • Participation (if applicable) of project partners, including a letter of confirmation from each partner organization
• Schedule detailing the work and related activities, including deadlines, and the start and end dates of the work (if relevant)
• Detailed budget for the entire capital project, including projected expenditures and expected and confirmed revenue
• For specialized equipment projects, renovation, restoration, construction or improvement to ventilation systems, a minimum of three quotes is required. In exceptional circumstances, the requirement for three quotes will be considered in consultation with the Cultural Developer
• Cash flow projections of your organization for the duration of the capital project based on schedule and timeline
• Clear demonstration that your facility is or will be accessible to persons with impaired mobility, as per the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (2005)
• Operating budget (revenue and expenditures) for the next three years indicating whether the projected revenue depends on the injection of new or increased public funding
• For construction, renovation or restoration projects – related sketches of the intended facility
• For construction, renovation or restoration projects over $200,000: your pre-feasibility and feasibility studies must be attached. Please contact the Cultural Developer who will provide you with the list of minimal requirements for the content of your studies
• For construction, renovation or restoration projects ranging from $60,000 to $200,000: a prefeasibility study, or its equivalent, is required and must be attached. Please contact the Cultural Developer who will provide you with the list of minimum requirements for the content of your studies
• For prefeasibility studies, at least three options/solutions must be identified for analysis regarding the site, architecture, project governance and projected expenses and revenue

Information to be provided by project type

Prefeasibility Study

• Information about your Organization(s)
• Information about your actual cultural facility or space
• Information about your Cultural Capital Project
  • Project Description
  • Work Schedule
  • Project Budget

Feasibility Study

• Information about your Organization(s)
• Information about your actual cultural facility or space
• Information about your Cultural Capital Project
  • Project Description
  • Work Schedule
  • Project Budget

Specialized Equipment & Ventilation System Improvement Project

• Information about your Organization(s)
• Information about your actual cultural facility or space
• Information about your Cultural Capital Project
  • Project Description
  • Work Schedule
  • Project Budget
  • Proof of Accessibility or accessibility plan
  • Three Quotes

Renovation, Restoration or Construction

• Information about your Organization(s)
• Information about your actual cultural facility or space
• Information about your Cultural Capital Project
  • Project Description
  • Work Schedule
  • Project Budget
  • Organization Cash Flow
  • Organization three-year operating budget
  • Project Sketches
  • Proof of Accessibility or accessibility plan
  • Prefeasibility study or equivalent 
  • Feasibility Study
  • Three Quotes
  • If located in a City of Ottawa facility, please provide proof of approval from City of Ottawa Facility Operations Service and Asset Management. For more information, contact Thomas.radford@ottawa.ca

* Before you begin drafting your application, you must contact Thomas Radford, Cultural Developer at thomas.radford@ottawa.ca This process is mandatory and should start at least two weeks prior to the deadline for application submission to the City.