City considers Mass. Clean Energy Center-funded on-street EV chargers; decision tabled pending survey and design details

Commonwealth Electric Technologies on Nov. 20 presented a Mass. Clean Energy Center-funded program to install on-street Level 2 electric-vehicle charging stations in Revere at no capital cost to the city.

Steve Contee, the company presenter, said the grant covers equipment and a five-year warranty and that municipalities chosen for the installation receive planning, site design and an option to enroll in a preventive maintenance program. Proposed on-street locations discussed with the commission included Procter/Proctor Avenue, Macomba (transcribed also as "Macova/Macomba") Street and Hutchinson Street near Broadway.

Contee said the stations would be pedestals with cables and, except for one Procter/Proctor location, each pedestal would have two plugs so two vehicles could charge simultaneously. He said the program requires a minimum of 12 hours a day designated EV-only for each site but municipalities often adopt additional windows; the city would own and maintain the stations at the end of the project, and the installer would fund a five-year warranty and an offered maintenance check-up program.

Commissioners asked about pedestrian and ADA impacts (the presenter said pedestals plus bollards would have roughly a 2-foot-by-2-foot footprint and would be sited to maintain required sidewalk width), safety if a vehicle struck a station (bollards would be installed), site selection and outreach. The presenter said the program included community engagement and surveys over the summer and that survey results were used to narrow roughly ten candidate sites to the three proposed.

After questions about coordination with Lighthouse Nursing Home near the Proctor/Procter location and requests to receive the outreach survey results and final site drawings, commissioners moved to table the installation and procurement steps until staff can provide the survey data, firm site plans and a staff recommendation on the hours-of-use and enforcement approach.

Votes at a glance: Motion to table the EV-charger procurement and permitting was made, seconded and carried by voice vote; commissioners requested survey and drawing deliverables prior to public hearing or procurement.

What’s next: Commonwealth Electric/Planning & Community Development to forward survey results, site drawings, proposed hours-of-use, footprint diagrams and ADA/maintenance terms; item will return to the commission for formal public hearing and vote.