ENHANCE DOWNTOWN VICTORIA
Murals and public art installations beautify downtown Victoria. The Enhance Downtown Victoria grant is worth 20% of the cost (to a maximum of $2,500) for property owners. Grants must be approved by a committee made up of DVBA and the City representatives. Application must be completed before any work is done.
Murals sponsored by the DVBA include Lady Justice, Queen Victoria, Janion, Hanging Dragons, Atomique building, Chinatown, and Library Lane.
Enhance Downtown Victoria Grants are available for:
- Retaining professional services of artists
- Purchasing raw materials
- Installing mural or public art
Grants will be paid upon satisfactory completion of work and receipt presentation. To be eligible for a grant, a property must be located within the downtown Victoria boundaries. The application must fully outline and illustrate the scope of work (materials, lighting, professional services, etc.) Unless circumstances warrant otherwise, more than one quote is required for proposed services or product. All work must receive the necessary heritage and design approvals, as well as building permits from the City of Victoria.
Please contact us for more information.
ILLUMINATE DOWNTOWN VICTORIA
The right lighting increases a sense of welcoming and security. We can help you light the way with our Illuminate Downtown Victoria grant. This grant is worth 50% of costs (to a maximum of $1000 per business) to install exterior lighting.
Many downtown properties have been lit through our Illuminate Downtown program since 2005, including Trounce, Waddington, and Dragon Alleys. Now we are streamlining the program to encourage small businesses to take advantage of this offer.
Financial assistance is available to help with the costs of:
- Retaining professional services of lighting designers
- Purchasing lighting products
- Installing lighting
These grants require pre-approval to ensure that funds will be available, as they will be issued on a first-come, first-served basis. Download the required application form here.
Grants will be paid upon satisfactory completion of work and receipt presentation. To be eligible for a grant, a property must be located within the downtown Victoria boundaries. If relevant, lighting work must receive the necessary heritage and design approvals, as well as building permits from the City of Victoria.
Please contact either Madison (madison@downtownvictoria.ca) or Alison (alison@downtownvictoria.ca) for more information on this program.
GULL DETERRENT GRANT
GULL DETERRENT GRANT
Seagulls? We can help. This grant, worth 50% (to a maximum of $500) of the cost of materials and hired labour, is available to property owners who want to install permanent rooftop and roofline devices, designed to prevent seagulls from roosting or perching.
To be eligible for a Gull Deterrent Grant, the property must be located within the downtown Victoria boundaries. The application must be approved by the DVBA before work is carried out. Please contact us for more information. The application form can be downloaded here.
Business Facade Improvement Program
This partnership between the City and the DVBA will provide financial support for businesses or property owners looking to improve the overall look and feel of commercial properties. An individual business can apply for a grant reimbursement of 50% of their costs to a maximum of $5000, or a property owner can apply for a grant reimbursement of 50% of costs to a maximum of $5000 per commercial tenant with a street-facing storefront (to a maximum of six tenants).
Participating properties must be within the area designated by the City for the program. This area is bounded by Discovery Street to the north, Blanshard Street to the east, Belleville Street to the south, and the harbour to the west.
Up to 50% of a participating business’ eligible expenses will be reimbursed by funds provided jointly by the DVBA and the City of Victoria. (If a business has been or will be receiving payment from insurance coverage, overlap will be managed so that funds for the same expenses will not be reimbursed by both insurance and this program).
Eligible expenses are:
- Exterior building surface treatments to include siding, moulding, trim, paint
- Upgraded exterior lighting features
- Exterior awnings – cleaning or replacement
- Permanent landscaping
- Bird deterrent features
- Exterior cleaning (e.g., hiring a professional company to power wash or scrub walls, windows, doors, awnings, etc.)
Each business and/or property owner is responsible for acquiring all necessary building permits and approvals before executing the Facade Improvement Plan on their building. If the building is a designated Heritage Building, City design approval is needed for proposed work.
If you are interested in proceeding with façade beautification, please contact Madison Sutcliffe, DVBA Member Engagement Coordinator, at madison@downtownvictoria.ca. As funds are limited, pre-approval is required and will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis.
Security and/or Vandalism Grants
In partnership with the City of Victoria, we are once again providing grants to ease the effects of vandalism and to assist businesses with security upgrades. Each business is eligible for 50% of their costs, to a maximum of $1000, to be rebated after repairing vandalism or after installing security features. Applicants may submit expenses dated between January 1, 2025 and December 31, 2025, or until funding runs out. Grants will be issued on a first-come, first-served basis.
Download the forms for vandalism repair and security upgrades here.
