Lenoir adds electric vehicle charging station downtown

News-Topic, Lenoir, N.C.
·2 min read

Nov. 2—The city of Lenoir now has 14 electric vehicle charging stations following the recent addition of a new station in downtown Lenoir.

The new ChargePoint electric vehicle charging station is located at 613 West Avenue.

The two-port station is in the parking lot behind Fire Station 1, said Joshua Harris, Lenoir director of communication and public information.

When North Carolina announced the Level 2 Charging Infrastructure Program, the Western Piedmont Council of Governments submitted applications for several local governments in the area. The program is funded with Volkswagen Settlement funds earmarked for North Carolina.

"DEQ pushed out the program, and we seized on it and tried to assist our members with the program," said Ben Willis, community and economic development director with WPCOG. "We wanted to help get those funds into the region and create a more robust EV charging network."

Today, there are there are 14 charging ports in Lenoir, including:

—Two ports at the new station in downtown at 613 West Ave.

—Two ports at the parking lot, 107 Boundary St.

—Two ports at the Bernhardt headquarters parking lot, 1839 Morganton Blvd.

—Two ports at Blue Ridge Energies, at 1216 Blowing Rock Blvd.

—A DC charger at Blue Ridge Energies, 100 Cooperative Way.

—Five ports at the J.E. Broyhill Civic Center, at 1913 Hickory Blvd.

"I think the new station in Lenoir is in a great location, and it's a great addition to the downtown area," Willis said. "It will allow people to enjoy downtown businesses while they are charging, and hopefully it will attract more people into the downtown area."

City staff prepared the site location before installation and will maintain the charging station.

The new station and the city's other EV charging station at 107 Boundary St. are currently free to use.

The station cost $11,468. The majority of the cost, $10,000, is being funded by a grant from the State's Level 2 Charging Infrastructure Program. The city is covering the remainder of the costs, Harris said.

The Volkswagen Settlement is an agreement between the German automaker and the U.S. Department of Justice on behalf of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Gov. Roy Cooper designated the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality to manage North Carolina's share of the funds. In Phase 1, nearly $30 million was awarded for projects across the state. Phase 2 of the settlement invested nearly $68 million on more projects to significantly reduce nitrogen oxide, NOx, emissions and improve air quality.

Click the following link to learn more about the WV Settlement funds in NC, https://www.deq.nc.gov/about/divisions/air-quality/motor-vehicles-and-air-quality/volkswagen-settlement.