Final grant approved for public EV charging stations in Gadsden

The funding has been approved, now all that remains is the T-crossing and I-dotting to get two new public electronic vehicle charging stations in Gadsden. However, the realistic time frame to see cars actually getting juice is likely to be about a year, according to those connected with the project.

Gov. Kay Ivey announced in November that Ira Phillips Inc. would receive a $77,818 grant, administered through the Alabama Department of Economic and Consumer Affairs, to install chargers at The Venue at Coosa Landing. Ira Phillips is chipping in $41,940 in matching funds.

The company was awarded a $180,965 grant in August for chargers at the City of Gadsden’s parking lot next to the Hardin Center for Cultural Arts.

Ivey said such grants reflect the state’s commitment to “supporting increased charging stations along our travel corridors.”

The first grant came through Alabama’s Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Program, with funds appropriated by the Legislature. The most recent one came from the state’s share of the multibillion-dollar Volkswagen settlement for Clean Air Act violations with the company’s diesel vehicles.

Ira Phillips pursued the grants in partnership with the City of Gadsden, which provided long-term leases for the sites, and the Gadsden-Etowah Industrial Development Authority.

“The process we’re in now is we have to fill out some paperwork so we can get formal approval from ADECA,” said Jonathan Tang, Ira Phillips’ vice president. “Then we’ve got to kind of do the homework portion, check the boxes and provide some information for them.

“Once that’s submitted, and it has been, then we’ll get the ‘final final approval,’ ” he said, “which basically means ‘hey, we’re greenlighted to proceed with this project.’ ”

When that happens, Tang said, the company will order the equipment from ChargePoint, its vendor, then “get with the city to make sure everything’s good on surveys ... and final placement, just making sure everything is good to go for boots hitting the ground, so to speak.”

Mayor Craig Ford is a booster of the project. “Bringing electric vehicle charging stations to Gadsden is important because it opens our city to a new market of shoppers and tourists we wouldn’t get otherwise," he said.

More: “Into the future": Gadsden groups push for public charging stations for electric vehicles

“The location at The Venue is strategic as we continue to invest in the East Broad Street corridor,” he said. “When the East Gadsden Connector is finished, that area will effectively transform into an interstate exit, so being ready to accommodate new visitors from all over is important to capturing every revenue stream possible.”

Tang said Ira Phillips has been told that if it were to place the equipment order right now, it would be looking at 12 months before it would be installed and ready for use. However, he noted that with the company’s installation of charging stations in Oxford in 2021, “12 months turned to 14.”

“What we’re being told is to budget six months for the upfront stuff,” he said, “and ChargePoint’s program is ‘give us six months to get everything shovel-ready.’”

ChargePoint calls itself the world’s largest network of electric vehicle charging stations with more than 200,000 charging points in 14 countries, roughly a quarter of them in the U.S. The company’s stations can be used by any EV make, including Tesla whose own charging stations are proprietary.

Each of the Gadsden setups will have two stations capable of charging four vehicles, according to Tang.

The stations at The Venue will be slower, Level 1 chargers and the ones at the Hardin Center will be faster, Level 2 units, he said, reflecting the contrasting intentions for each site.

Tang said the expectation is that people spending multiple hours in the co-working spaces available in the IDA office at The Venue will be using those chargers. “We’ll probably capture a little local as well as people attending (Venue) events,” he added.

The Hardin Center chargers are aimed at tourists and people passing through Gadsden. “It’s right off (U.S. Highway) 431,” Tang said, “and people going south or north can bebop in there and charge if they need to.”

Tang said it also could be used by people who are downtown for an hour or two to dine or shop. ADECA Director Kenneth Boswell said the November grant announcement (Phenix City and Smiths Station also got money) that having EV charging access could actually drive commerce to communities.

Both stations will be listed in ChargePoint’s database, which can be accessed through an app (which can also be used to pay for charging, as can credit cards). “Somebody driving (on U.S. 431) between Guntersville and (Interstate) 20 who needs a little juice to get home,” Tang said, “we’ll pop up on that map.”

He said there also are plans to join other EV and clean energy databases.

Ford thanked Ira Phillips, Tang and IDA Director David Hooks for their efforts on the project, calling it “another innovative win for Gadsden.”

This article originally appeared on The Gadsden Times: Update on EV charging stations in Gadsden