Halifax opens event grants for 2027-28, deadline Nov. 29

HALIFAX – Non-profit groups have until Sunday, Nov. 29, at 11:59 p.m. to apply for Halifax Regional Municipality grants that fund events taking place between April 1, 2027, and March 31, 2028, the municipality said Nov. 2.

Two programs are now open: the Marketing Levy Special Event Reserve Grants and the Regional Special Events Grants. The municipality said the marketing levy money comes from the hotel tax that applies to overnight sleeping establishments.

The marketing levy grants have two streams. The Distinguished Events program backs one-time, large-scale events with high potential for national and international exposure that encourage multi-day visits and give the municipality a competitive advantage. The New Events (Emerging) program is for organizations that bring or create a new event to fill a gap in the event calendar and could become an annual tourism draw. Applicants must have operated for at least a year with demonstrated event-management experience. Events in both streams need a minimum budget of $50,000.

The Regional Special Events Grants support non-profits whose events foster community development, celebrate heritage, arts and culture, build bridges between diverse populations and improve civic pride. The Community Celebrations stream covers events that are free and open to the public, last fewer than five days and are organized mainly for local residents. The Significant Anniversaries stream supports events marking milestones such as 25th, 50th, 75th and 100th anniversaries, and those events need a minimum budget of $7,500.

Details and application forms are on the municipality’s event grants page.

The grants follow other recent municipal money decisions. Our earlier coverage looked at the rising cost of the Halifax Forum rebuild and a public consultation on the Mill Cove and Bedford waterfront plan. Weekly closures are tracked in our Halifax road closures roundup.

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Source: Halifax Regional Municipality public service announcement, Nov. 2, 2026. Photo: file photo of the 2025 Halifax Busker Festival on the waterfront; not from a grant-funded event.