Council accepts state and federal grants to install EV chargers and support electric vehicles
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Summary
The council approved acceptance of multiple grants for electric-vehicle charging infrastructure: a DEC award for chargers at the golf course and police station, a National Grid make-ready grant, and a Department of Energy grant to install a DC fast charger at Erie and Union and to rebate an electric vehicle purchase.
The Schenectady City Council approved acceptance of several state and federal grants Monday that officials said will bring electric-vehicle charging infrastructure to public sites with little or no out-of-pocket cost to the city.
Deputy Chief (presenter) told the finance committee the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has awarded $16,000 to install chargers at the municipal golf course and $38,800 for chargers at the police station. “There’ll be no out of pocket expense to the city, and we will have electric chargers at the golf course,” the deputy chief said. Council members moved and approved acceptance of that grant.
Council members also approved participation in a National Grid New York make-ready program to cover remaining installation costs at the golf course, and they approved applying Department of Energy funds through the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant program to install a DC fast charger proposed at the corner of Erie and Union. The deputy chief described an anticipated DC-project budget of roughly $99,000 for the charger and about $27,660 to be used as a rebate toward a fully electric city vehicle.
Officials said there is no matching requirement on these grants. Staff told the council the police fleet currently includes seven electric vehicles, with an additional electric vehicle just delivered last week. City staff and the assistant chief said DC fast chargers require substantially more power than Level 2 chargers and that site selection depends on available power capacity; Level 2 chargers are more flexible in placement.
Council members asked about utilization data, siting beyond downtown and how the city will scale capital funding to meet longer-term electrification goals. The deputy chief said annual capital requests will need to increase if the city wants to reach future electrification targets.
All grant motions were put to the committee and approved by voice vote, with no recorded roll-call tallies in the meeting transcript.
