Civic Events funding

Background

Civic Events Funding helps support family friendly events in Ottawa communities and priority neighbourhoods. Funding is provided by the City of Ottawa's Community and Social Services Department. A total of $50,000 is available, with a maximum amount of $3,000 per event funding provided one-time per organization, per year.

Funding priorities

This funding is used to deliver family-friendly events in local Ottawa communities and neighbourhoods. Events should:

• Promote neighbours meeting neighbours in their local area
• Include multiple activities, family entertainment and attractions that would interest specific priority neighbourhood or ward
• Promote community well-being by welcoming all community members and/or priority groups, and
• Promote equity and inclusion

Civic Events funding will prioritize events that support the priority populations outlined in the Community Funding Framework Policy Statements Opens in a new tab or window(link is external),including Francophones, immigrants, Indigenous Peoples, 2SLGBTQQIA+ community members, older adults, people living in poverty, people with disabilities, racialized people, rural residents, women and youth. Priority neighbourhoods, as defined by the Neighbourhood Equity Index, will also be a priority.

Timeline

Dates are subject to change at the discretion of the City of Ottawa.

Assessment of proposals

Allocation of funds

Stage 1: Screening for Completeness and Eligibility

A City of Ottawa staff member will review all applications to ensure that they:

• Meet all requirements for submission
• All required sections completed
• Provide all information and documents, or a reason for not providing it that is acceptable to the City
• Satisfy all eligibility criteria.

Stage 2: Civic Events Allocation Committee Review

• All eligible applications will be assessed through an allocation committee process. The Civic Events Allocation Committee, comprised of City of Ottawa staff from the Social Development and Funding branch, will review all proposals and score them in relation to the evaluation criteria.
• As part of the evaluation, applicants may be asked to provide clarification on certain aspects of the proposal. Clarifications and information given by applicants may be included and scored with the criteria above.
• The Allocation Committee will discuss and rank each application and has the right to adjust the scoring based upon the discussion. They will recommend an amount of Civic Events funding to be awarded to each successful applicant.

Stage 3: Management Allocation Review

• The Program Manager of the Social Development and Funding branch will review the recommendations from the Community Events Allocation Committee to ensure that funding is awarded to eligible organizations and events in accordance with the stated purpose of the funding.
• The Program Manager can adjust the funding amount based on this review and will provide the final decision on the applicants to be approved for Civic Events funding and allocation amounts.
• The decisions of the Program Manager are final and not subject to any right of appeal.

Contribution Agreement Process and Requirements

The City will send a letter by email to each successful applicant with a contribution offer and a draft contribution agreement outlining the terms and conditions of the contribution. Applicants must contact the City within five business days of the date of the letter to accept the contribution and enter into a contribution agreement.

The City may withdraw the offer of contribution if the applicant does not accept the offer of contribution within 5 business days of the date of the letter. Once the contribution agreement has been signed, the City will provide the contribution in the form of a single payment to the organization.

The contribution agreement includes a condition that the applicant (the “Recipient”) provide the City with a certificate of insurance indicating that the Recipient has in place appropriate commercial general liability insurance for the event described in the contribution agreement and the activities that will be part of the event, subject to a limit of between two and five million dollars ($2- 5,000,000.00), with the City of Ottawa named as an additional insured.

Please note that if the organization is not incorporated, at least three of the directors of the organization will be required to sign the Contribution Agreement and will be individually accountable, liable, and responsible for the activities of the organization and the event.

Reporting Requirement under the Contribution Agreement

Successful applicants are required to report on the outcome of the Civic Event. This will include providing a financial statement of actual revenues and expenses as well as a brief description of the event itself.

Insurance

Successful applicants must obtain at least $2 million of commercial general liability insurance coverage for the event. The City of Ottawa must be named as an additional insured.

If the event is being held at a City-owned facility, park, or sports field for which the applicant has signed an Ottawa Rental Contract, there is no requirement to obtain additional insurance as it is included in the cost of the contract. The applicant will be required to provide a copy of the rental contract.

Bouncy Castles must be set up by a professional company that remains on site to monitor its use, removes it, and carries their own insurance with the City of Ottawa named as an additional insured.

If fireworks are intended as part of the event, they must occur under the supervision of a fireworks Supervisor. See Section 9: Fireworks and Open Air Fires in the City of Ottawa Event Guide Opens in a new tab or window(link is external).

General Expectations

Successful applicants must fulfill all the terms and conditions of the contribution agreement. If there are difficulties in complying with any of the terms and conditions of the contribution agreement, City staff must be contacted immediately so all parties can work together to resolve the situation.