JUICE UP

EV chargers are now active

The newly installed chargers are located outside St. Andrews Gate

by Emma DiMaggio

emmad@lwsb.com

Seven new electric vehicle (EV) chargers installed just outside the St. Andrews Gate are up and running.

Installation was completed in late March and residents have already begun to charge their vehicles at the site.

The chargers include three individual and two dual-port stations—both of which were designed by ChargePoint, a company that runs the largest EV charging network in North America and Europe. These Level 2 charging stations are specifically designed for light-duty passenger vehicles.

Before the new charger installations, the closest EV charging station was located about one mile away from Leisure World at the Chevron on 2950 Westminster Blvd. Only one home in LW is equipped with its own charging station, in Mutual 5.

LW residents can charge their electric or hybrid vehicles at the chargers for a cost of 25 cents per kilowatt-hour.

According to Physical Property Manager Kevin Black, cars typically take about two hours to charge, depending on how much “juice” is needed for an individual vehicle.

Residents are urged to only use the spaces for charging. This past week, “EV Parking Only” signage was painted onto each space to prevent people from using the spaces as parking spots.

Residents who use the charging stations as parking spots or who leave their vehicles in the spaces for extended periods of time will be charged $10 per hour parked.

The total cost of the project was $81,241.69, paid by the Golden Rain Foundation.

Grant money from the Southern California Edison Charge Ready program will reimburse this cost, and GRF will get a return on its investment as more people pay to use the chargers.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, most publicly available charging equipment across California provides Level 2 charging.

The state has more EV registrations than any other state by far, a total of 563,070. The next closest state is Florida, which has 95,640.

According to a report from the California’s Office of the Governor, the state’s electric vehicle market now encompasses nearly 18% of all new cars sold, and that number is expected to increase.

A 2021 analysis from the California Energy Commission estimates that the state will need 1.2 million EV chargers by 2030 to accommodate a whopping 7.5 million passenger plug-in EVs.

Zero-emission vehicle sales made up 19% of all new car sales in California in 2022, according to state data released in January, up 38% from 2021 and 138% from 2020.