By Mary Owen
When all hoops are jumped through, chargers for electric vehicles will be installed near the park and public restrooms in Mill City.
“This would include four DC fast chargers and one Level 2 charger,” said Alan Meyer, with Pacific Power, who heads the project. “Unlike the chargers in Detroit, ours will be universal, not just for Tesla vehicles.”
Meyer said Pacific Power has been working with the State of Oregon to accelerate transportation electrification throughout its Oregon service area.
“Mill City has been identified as a key location as this would help electric vehicles coming from and going to Central Oregon extend their range,” Meyer said. “And it’s pretty much the end of line for us as our territory ends a couple of miles east of Gates. Plus, the location is near restrooms, food and drink, and we anticipate as folks are charging up their vehicles they will spend a little of their money in Mill City as well.”
Meyer said five new parking spaces for the chargers will be added to avoid eliminating the use of existing spaces. The chargers will be fully upgradeable as technology changes, he added.
“Pacific Power and our stakeholders want to ensure rural communities can share in the benefits of electric transportation,” Meyer said. “We met with local leaders in October of last year to discuss potential locations. The priorities were in placing these stations in places near major routes that have been ignored by private networks and have local amenities for drivers to spend time at while their car charges.”
According the Meyer, charging an electric vehicle with the commonly used 120-volt plug, like the one used to charge cell phones, would mean leaving the vehicle plugged in overnight.
“Level 2 and Level 3, or DC fast charging are much faster,” he said. “The four fast chargers are capable of charging electric cars in about 30 minutes. The level 2 chargers take around three to five hours to charge.”
The chargers are available for all electric car drivers, with ports or “plugs” used by brands other than Tesla. Tesla drivers will be able to charge at the stations with a commonly available adaptor.
“These chargers will provide economic benefit to local businesses and the community,” Meyer said. “Electric car drivers spend an average of 33 minutes fast charging their car. Most try and time their charging stops with a meal or coffee break. Electric cars have no tailpipe emissions, so that means less pollution in our community too!”
The challenge in rural communities is locating the chargers in an area that is attractive to drivers to stop to charge and have activities while charging, he added.
“The initial upfront costs of the chargers drives much of the infrastructure to more urban areas where greater usage will occur,” he said.
Meyer said the local chamber and community members have supported the charging station.
“The next step is to move the project through Mill City’s Planning Commission, then an approval by the city council,” he said. “Once we get the go ahead, we would like to construct the station this year.”
Meyer believes the charging station will put Mill City on the map “literally” as the chargers will be listed on electric vehicle maps and GPS units.
The charging station project is just one of the many ways Pacific Power is invested in the future of Mill City, Meyer said.
“We have a long history of supporting this community and will continue to support and meet the aspirations Mill City,” he said.
For more information, call Meyer at 503-767-6809 or message him at alan.meyer@pacificorp.com.
