Eligibility and Funding
Planning is a critical part of a conservation project. Having a plan in place prepared by a heritage professional will help guide the decisions you make for future projects. Planning Project Grants provide heritage site owners and stewards an opportunity to work with a Heritage Consultant. Examples of the type of research and documentation this can assist with include:
- Heritage Assessment: to collect documentation to apply for addition to the Vancouver Heritage Register.
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- Planning grants to support addition to the Register can cover 100% of the cost, up to the listed planning grant maximum.
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- Conservation Plan: to document the history and significance of the site, inventory architectural features or other character-defining elements, and identify conservation priorities.
- Maintenance Plan: to identify required maintenance and guide long-term planning around the care of the site.
Preserving the original fabric and retaining the character-defining elements of your site are essential parts of protecting its heritage value and ensuring its longer-term life. Conservation Project Grants provide financial assistance with the costs of conserving your heritage building or site. Examples of the type of projects eligible for a Conservation Project Grant include:
- The painting of your building in an authentic historical colour scheme using VHF’s True Colours paint palette.
- Restoration of original wood windows or installation of historically appropriate windows where they have previously been lost.
- Structural, envelope and building systems work that is essential to ensure the longevity and continued use or reuse of the structure.
Applicants to the Conservation Project Grant must follow best practices outlined in the Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places in Canada.
- The site must be on the Vancouver Heritage Register or planning an application to get on the Register. If you are unsure if your site is on the Vancouver Heritage Register check here.
- Sites of Indigenous cultural signficance are exempt from this guideline.
- Applications are open to individual private owners, strata corporations, registered non-profit societies or federally registered charities, and First Nations.
- The start date of proposed projects must be after the application processing period and must complete within 12 months of acceptance into the program.
- In order to be eligible, projects must pertain to exterior elements or to the site’s overall structural integrity, unless the interior of the site is designated on the Vancouver Heritage Register. VHF will not fund replacement of original heritage fabric when repair and retention is an option.
VHF aims to support a variety to projects annually and can provide financial assistance up to 50% of the project cost to a set maximum.**
The amount of support for a project is determined by several factors; type of ownership of the site, the scale of the project and need for financial support. The amounts shown are maximums only and do not represent guaranteed funding amounts.
Select True Colours painting projects will also recieve complimentary paint for their project (up to 25 gallons) courtesy of Sherwin-Williams.
| Ownership Types & Heritage Protection | Private Ownership | Private Ownership with Heritage Designation* | Non-profit Ownership/ First Nation |
Non-profit ownership/ First Nation, with Heritage Designation* |
| Planning Projects | $2,000 | $2,000 | $3,000 | $3,000 |
| Conservation Projects | $7,500 | $10,000 | $10,000 | $25,000 |
| 5 year maximum per site | $20,000 | $25,000 | $30,000 | $70,000 |
