Canada Invests in Retrofits for Community Housing in St. John's

ST. JOHN'S, NL, March 21, 2025 /CNW/ - Canada's buildings sector is the third-largest contributor to greenhouse gases across the country. Retrofits to existing buildings can improve energy efficiency and comfort for residents while reducing their pollution.

Today, the Honourable Joanne Thompson, on behalf of the federal Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, announced that Natural Resources Canada's (NRCan) Greener Neighbourhoods Pilot Program (GNPP) is investing $5.4 million toward deep energy retrofits for 101 municipally owned community housing units in St. John's. The City of St. John's is investing $4.4 million and has also received $1.66 million in funding through Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation's (CMHC) Affordable Housing Fund to support the improvements of these 101 units and additional repairs of 65 units.

These retrofits are expected to reduce energy use by more than 50 percent and greenhouse gas emissions from each unit by more than 80 percent. The project will retrofit the building exterior and improve the efficiency of lighting and heating systems.  

Going forward, the project will allow the City of St. John's to compare and validate the energy performance and cost of retrofitting various types of residential properties. This will help identify cost-effective retrofits for other projects in the future.

The funding announced today will help improve the community housing on offer in St. John's, increase energy efficiency for residential units and advance Canada's commitment in the global fight against climate change.

Quotes

"Energy efficiency means cost savings for Canadians. At a time when we are facing challenges with affordability and climate change, affordable energy-efficiency projects like the ones announced today meet Canadians where they are at and delivers the action they need, at the pace and scale they are demanding. Programs like the Greener Neighbourhoods Pilot Program help deliver on the commitments announced recently in Canada's first-ever Green Buildings Strategy, which is a plan to save Canadians money, create jobs and seize the economic opportunities that a clean and sustainable economy presents."

The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson
Minister of Energy and Natural Resources

"Helping households make deep energy retrofits will reduce emissions across entire neighbourhoods. By working together, we can lower the cost of construction and reduce energy emissions right here in St. John's."

The Honourable Joanne Thompson
Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard

"The City of St. John's is committed to advancing sustainability and energy efficiency in our community. This investment in deep energy retrofits will significantly reduce emissions, lower energy costs and enhance the comfort of community housing residents. By piloting innovative retrofit solutions, we are not only improving our housing stock but also laying the groundwork for a greener, more-resilient city."

Sheilagh O'Leary
Deputy Mayor and Lead for Sustainability, City of St. John's

Quick Facts

• A deep energy retrofit is an extensive overhaul of a building's systems that can generate large savings in energy costs, improve comfort and help decarbonize buildings. Deep energy retrofits typically save at least 50 percent in energy consumption, reduce emissions by 80 percent, reduce utility costs and may in some circumstances improve resiliency and adaptation to climate change.
• With a total of $35.5 million in funding over five years, GNPP is piloting the Energiesprong deep energy retrofit model in the Canadian market, which accelerates the pace and scale of retrofits by grouping similar homes and buildings in a neighbourhood into a large project. This creates mass demand for deep energy retrofits that can be repeated across multiple homes.
• In the first phase of the GNPP, NRCan invested in regional market development teams (MDTs) to prepare scalable deep energy retrofit plans for their communities. MDTs build capacity among local industry actors to participate in more complex retrofit projects, help to find solutions to regional gaps and barriers and drive market transformation. The second phase of the GNPP is supporting deep energy retrofit demonstration projects at the neighbourhood scale (more than 100 units).
• CMHC funding for the City of St. John's GNPP project is delivered through CMHC's Affordable Housing Fund (AHF).
• The AHF provides funding through low-interest and forgivable loans or contributions to partnered organizations for new affordable housing and the renovation and repair of existing affordable and community housing. This is a $14.6-billion program under the National Housing Strategy (NHS) that gives priority to projects that help people who need it most, including women and children fleeing family violence, seniors, Indigenous Peoples, people living with disabilities, those with mental health or addiction issues, Veterans and young adults.

Related Information

• Greener Neighbourhoods Pilot Program
• Canada Green Building Strategy
• 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan: Clean Air, Strong Economy
• Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation
• CanmetENERGY Ottawa
• Federation of Canadian Municipalities

Associated links:  

• Piloting New Ways to Make Homes More Energy-Efficient and Affordable
• Working Toward Making More Homes Energy-Efficient and Affordable in the Yukon
• Canada Invests in Deep Energy Retrofits for Affordable Housing in Hamilton
• St. John's Non-Profit Housing Deep Retrofits

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SOURCE Natural Resources Canada

Contacts: Media Relations, Natural Resources Canada, 343-292-6096, [email protected]; Joanna Sivasankaran, Director of Communications, Office of the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, [email protected]