London Vacant Commercial Space Fit-Out Grant
Compared with the 242 other application forms we have read
- Winning means you must keep the equipment in place and working for a stated period. 12 ask that.
- Scored mainly on who you are, not what you propose. 29 lead with that.
- What does not disqualify you: No two-year lease for owner/occupiers. 119 record an exemption like this.
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Eligibility & Details
What this program funds and who can apply
Program Description
Covers 50% of eligible fit-out costs, up to $50,000, to bring a business into a vacant commercial space in London's Core Area Community Improvement Project Area. The by-law defines a vacant space as one not currently occupied by a tenant, regardless of any lease obligation on it. A tenant, a business owner, a property owner opening a business in their own space, or an agent acting for them can apply. The program exists to reduce Core Area vacancy and establish viable new businesses in street-level commercial space.
Eligibility Requirements
- The applicant may be the property owner, a business owner or tenant occupying the space, or an authorized agent acting for them, including a contractor retained to do the improvements. A tenant applicant needs a lease of at least 2 years. An owner/occupier opening a business in their own vacant space has that requirement waived and files an annual report instead, confirming the business remains open and the space occupied as a targeted use.
- The space must be vacant, meaning not currently occupied by a tenant, regardless of any lease obligation on it. City staff visit the property before and after the work to verify it.
- A complete application must be received and a City Commitment Letter issued before any work can start. The program does not apply retroactively to work completed before the guidelines took effect.
- Targeted commercial uses only: arts and culture, music and creative industry, entertainment including cinemas and live theatre but not adult entertainment, restaurants, coffee houses and cafes, niche or destination retail, office uses above the first floor, grocery stores, specialty food retailers and delicatessens, uses serving Core Area residents or employees, and tourism uses. Final determination of use eligibility rests with the City.
- Any City of London loans on the property must be in good standing with no arrears owing, and there must be no City of London Building Division orders, deficiencies or by-law infractions on the property, unless the grant is for eligible works that address those deficiencies.
- A business already in the Core Area that relocates must move to a space LARGER than its current one, and must supply the square footage of both the current and the proposed premises. The City's summary page still shows the older 'Downtown' wording; the by-law governs.
- Where the work needs a building permit, the grant application must be submitted at the same time as the building permit application, and the cost estimates must be consistent with the estimate on the permit.
- One grant per discrete building, ever. This is a one-time grant, and a separate application is required for each discrete building.
- A grant commitment is valid for one year from the date of the Commitment Letter and expires if the work is not completed in that time. The City may grant one written extension of up to a year, at its discretion, on written request.
Quick Assessment
Funding Details
- Amount
- Up to $50,000 (50% of eligible costs)
- Type
- Grant
- Level
- Municipal
- Co-Funding
- Up to 50% of eligible costs
- Deadline
- Ongoing — subject to budget availability
Program Scorecard
Competition, effort, and approval at a glance
Moderate — standard application process
Below average competition
Moderate — standard requirements
How to Win
Insider tips, common pitfalls, and what successful applicants look like
Insider TipThere is no online portal.
Rejection Pitfalls 9
- Fit-out work commenced before pre-approval was issued
Success Profile
Evaluation Criteria
How the City of London judges your application
What the reviewer scores, what gets applications rejected, and what to write.
Distilled from 6+ source documents, condensed into one brief. Sources as of 2026-09-03.
6 of the sources
- Community improvement and incentives — City of London london.ca
- Bill No. 138 pub-london.escribemeetings.com
- Report to Planning and Environment Committee — Amendments and… pub-london.escribemeetings.com
- Neighbourhood Community Improvement Plan: Downtown and Core Area —… london.ca
- Downtown London downtownlondon.ca
- GrantCompass catalogue record #721
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What the City of London favours
Cover letter describing work and summarising quotations◦
“A Cover letter with a description of the work to be completed and summary of the provided quotations”
The form
Before you apply
- 1Step 1 — Pre-application consultation with City staffwritten answer
It is strongly recommended the Applicant consult with Staff before submitting a formal application to discuss the proposed project.
- 2Filing sequence — the grant application and the building permit application go in togethershort answer
Application package
- 3The application form itself (signed and dated)short answer
- 4Cover letter — description of the work and summary of the quotationswritten answer
A Cover letter with a description of the work to be completed and summary of the provided quotations
- 5Two contractor quotationslist
- 6Summary and brief history of the businesswritten answer
- 7Contact information of the business ownershort answer
- 8Grant amount requestedshort answer
- 9Before photos of the vacant propertylist
- 10Proof of business ownershipshort answer
- 11Property lease agreementshort answer
- 12Property eligibility confirmationshort answer
- 13Organizational informationlist
- 14Business credit reportshort answer
- 15Square footage of the current and proposed locations (relocating businesses only)table
- 16Anything else staff ask forshort answer
Legal Agreement
- 17applicant and property identificationtable
- 18permit and project-value blocktable
- 19Legal Agreement — acknowledgement, certification and signaturecheckboxes
After the work
- 20After the work — the evidence that releases the moneylist
the City of London states no length limits for these answers.
Judged against
- 1
Is the property itself eligible?
Show them Give the address, legal description, roll number and zoning, and confirm the space is vacant and not City-owned or City-leased.◦
In the funder’s words · 1
- Property Requirements
- 2
Is this a targeted commercial use?
What to show, and the funder’s 1 criterion behind it in Premium
- 3
Will staff accept the package as complete?
What to show, and the funder’s 2 criteria behind it in Premium
- 4
Does the money arithmetic hold up?
What to show, and the funder’s 1 criterion behind it in Premium
4 questions the reviewer answers about you, in Premium.
Where applicants fail
“The application must be approved before any work begins.”
“In general, the lower of the two estimates will be taken as the cost of the eligible works.”
Premium · the rest of this brief
See all 30 rules that can reject you and every criterion you are judged on. Then we draft your application for you.
18 more rules that can reject you · 4 more criteria · 13 more prompts
Do you pass?
Each one can rule you out. Tick the ones you meet.
The project
Filed with the building permit
The grant application must be submitted at the same time as the building permit application (if required);
No work before Commitment Letter
A complete application must be received, and a City Commitment Letter issued before any work can commence.
Inside the Core Area CIPA
The property must be located within the Core Area Community Improvement Project Area as defined in the Core Area Community Improvement Area By-law (see Map 1)
No other City CIP money for works
The works applied for under the Vacant Commercial Space Fit-Out Program shall not include any costs for which grants or loans have been applied for and approved under any other City of London Community Improvement Plan financial incentive program.
Arts, culture and music uses
Arts and culture; Music and creative industry;
Restaurants, coffee houses and cafes
Restaurants, coffee houses, and cafes;
Grocery, specialty food and delis
Grocery Stores, Specialty Food Retailers, and Delicatessens;
Not apartment hotels
Apartment Hotels
Not a bed and breakfast
Bed and Breakfast establishment
Not office-apartment buildings
Office-apartment buildings
Not a police station
Police Station
Not private clubs
Private clubs
1 thing this funder says you do NOT need, in Premium.
Documents to attach
Ticks are kept on this device.
The money
Maximum grant$50,000 per commercial space
A maximum of $50,000 per commercial space
Per discrete building50% of eligible works cost
loans will not exceed 50% of the cost of the eligible works that related to each discrete building
Professional fees caplesser of $5,000 or 10%
the lesser of a maximum of $5,000 or 10% of the loan
Annual budget$975,000 per year program budget
An annual budget of $975,000 has been established to fund the Vacant Commercial Space Fit-Out Grant Program.
Your shareLesser of 50% of costs or $50,000
Grants will be issued to cover the lesser of: 50% of the cost of the eligible works per commercial space; or A maximum of $50,000 per commercial space.
StackingNo double funding from other City programs
The works applied for under the Vacant Commercial Space Fit-Out Program shall not include any costs for which grants or loans have been applied for and approved under any other City of London Community Improvement Plan financial incentive program. Each property is eligible to avail simultaneously of multiple incentive programs provided through the other City of London Community Improvement Plans, where eligible. However, the funding from these other programs cannot be used to subsidize the property owner's share of the total cost of the grant programs property improvements required within the Vacant Commercial Space Fit Out grant program.
Costs before approvalWork before program start not funded
The Financial Incentive Program will not apply retroactively to work completed before the effective date of the Vacant Commercial Space Fit-Out Grant Program Guidelines.
What it pays for · 9
- Necessary work to the property to meet Ontario Building Code requirements, including AODA compliance improvements;
- Awnings that are affixed to the exterior street front of a building which are used to keep the sun or rain off a storefront, window, doorway, or sidewalk, and/or to provide signage for a commercial tenant;
- Business name signage that is affixed to the exterior street front of a building;
- Decorative lighting which is affixed to the exterior street front of a building that is ornamental and installed for aesthetic effect;
- Permanent fixtures and fittings, new flooring, lighting, doors, painting, finished framing, and window openings and windows for improved visibility;
- Restoration of deteriorated interior historic / architectural elements;
- Extension of an existing business to an adjacent vacant space;
- Professional fees for the preparation of drawings and technical specifications required for eligible works (limited to the lesser of a maximum of $5,000 or 10% of the loan);
- Other fit-out property improvements associated with customizing the space to the specific needs of the retailer at the discretion of the Deputy City Manager, Housing and Community Growth or designate.
What it does not pay for · 1
- Furniture, accessories, racks, moveable shelving, and non-affixed property that can be easily removed and sold.
From application to money
- Talk to City staffStaff share form and discuss permits
- File both applicationsFile grant and permit together
- Commitment Letter issuedStaff review package, may request more
- Do the approved worksComplete works within one year
- Send invoices and close permitSend paid invoices and closed permit
- Grant paid by voucherGrant paid by voucher
In the funder’s words · 6
- Talk to City staff
- Staff provide the application form and can discuss permits and other incentive programs that may apply.
- File both applications
- The complete package goes in alongside the building permit filing, before any work starts.
- Commitment Letter issued
- Staff review the package for completeness and may ask for more information before accepting it.
- Do the approved works
- Only the scope set out in the Commitment Letter and Legal Agreement counts toward the grant.
- Send invoices and close permit
- Paid invoices, receipts, after-photos, a closed building permit and a signed Legal Agreement release the money.
- Grant paid by voucher
- Staff prepare a voucher in the approved amount and contact the applicant to receive it.
Quoted lines are word for word from the source documents; lines marked ◦ are our reading of them.
Everything you need to win London Vacant Commercial Space Fit-Out Grant
Not a marketing summary. The actual checklist, intel, and stack strategy reviewers look for.
- 9 rejection pitfalls reviewers flag — so you catch them first
- 15-document checklist with what each reviewer is actually checking
- Your Application Game Plan — the print-ready PDF the preview below describes
- 5-step application timeline with prep hours per step
- Insider tip from program officers on what separates winners
- 3-program stacking strategy to combine with compatible funding
- Success profile + evaluation criteria — exactly what reviewers score on
Application Playbook
Step-by-step process, required documents, and expenses
Application Steps
Required Documents 15
Eligible Expenses 15
Ineligible Expenses 4
Intake Periods
Deadline Notes
Ineligible Organizations
Funding Stack Strategy
Compatible programs, clawback risk, and combined funding potential
Compatible Programs
Clawback Risk
Low RiskHow London Vacant Commercial Space Fit-Out Grant Compares
Side-by-side with similar programs
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| CanExport SMEs | Up to $50,000 | Moderate | Mixed (Advance + Reimb.) | Between intakes — the... |
| Commercial Façade Improvement Grant P... | Up to $12,500 (50% of costs) | Easy | Reimbursement | Annual Intake |
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