More Stations to Charge Electric Vehicles Coming
PALMDALE — New electric vehicle charging stations will be coming to three areas of Palmdale thanks to the city’s share of a $14.8 million grant.
The City Council on Wednesday unanimously agreed to accept the Federal Highway Administration grant, which will fund 80% of the EVequity Leadership Project, spearheaded by the city and nonprofit The Energy Coalition, or TEC.
The project is intended to remove obstacles to electric vehicle use in disadvantaged communities that have not typically had the charging infrastructure. It will fund installation of electric vehicle chargers at approximately 50 locations across Los Angeles County.
Palmdale will receive nearly $1.7 million in the grant fund to install electric vehicle chargers in areas of the city currently without them that are within walking distance of affordable housing.
Under this project, six chargers will be installed at the Palmdale City Library, 14 at Domenic Massari Park and 12 at Poncitlán Square.
The Poncitlán Square site, in particular, will serve the nearby apartment complexes where residents typically have difficulties in accessing charging stations, Environmental Resources Manager Ben Mucha said.
“It’s going to take a variety of charging solutions to meet everybody’s needs,” Mayor Austin Bishop said.
The city will act as a pass-through agency for the overall grant and the $18.5 million EVequity Leadership Project, which also includes outreach and workforce development in addition to charging stations, according to the staff report.
The federal grant will cover 80% of the project costs; the remainder will come from California Energy Commission funds, the city’s private-sector partner Electric Vehicle Charging Solutions and two grant-funded programs administered by TEC.
