Ferndale hopes to increase its EV charging stations this year

FERNDALE — The city of Ferndale is hoping to expand its inventory of electric vehicle chargers in the near future.

At its March 23 meeting, Public Works Director James Jameson presented to the Ferndale City Council an update on the city’s EV charging system and its intention to update its EV master plan.

Jameson stated that, currently, there are seven charging ports in The dot parking garage. The city also previously had two in the Withington Street and Ferndale Area District Library parking lots, respectively, but they were removed last year after they failed and were found to be not repairable.

The two ports were installed in 2014. Over the course of nine years, the city was able to collect information about how much each was used.

“Over the course of time, we track data, and we have about 446,000 equivalent EV miles from charging at those two systems,” Jameson said. “So, they were very valuable over their lifespan.”

Jameson stated that the city’s EV system is functional right now, but its biggest weakness is that the city has limited coverage, as the chargers are only located in The dot. He would like to have four more locations in Ferndale where people could use the stations.

In the short term, Jameson said, he wants to replace the lost charging stations from the library and Winthington Street lots as early as this summer.

“The old chargers there were built at a time where dual port wasn’t really a thing or was an emerging thing,” he said. “We would really like to install dual port network Level 2 chargers at those locations, so that way two people can charge. The infrastructure is already there. We won’t have to do much. We should be able to pull the extra circuit through the existing conduit so we’ll be able to expand the program by double at those two locations for a minimal cost.”

Jameson also wanted to investigate more on the use of lampposts for EV charging stations. One of the companies that the city wants to look into, Voltpost, has charging ports in Pleasant Ridge and uses EV charging on lampposts to infill some of the parking lots.

“One of the advantages is all of our parking lots do have parking lot lights. So, potentially, this may be a way for us to add some additional EV charging in parking lots for minimal costs,” he said.

Long term, Jameson said, he wants the city to update its EV master plan, as the electric vehicle space has evolved since the last plan was made in 2023, and he wants to craft something with more of an emphasis on stakeholder and user feedback

One change is fewer grants that are available to fund these projects, as a large percentage of these projects had been supplemented by grants.

Jameson also wants the plan to have a focus on deployment and selecting locations where there will be a high demand for EV stations.

“When we do that, these systems pay for themselves,” he said. “Not only do they pay for themselves, but at the end of service life, you should have some money to go towards the new equipment that needs to replace them every five to seven years. That is not true if you put them in low-use sites. So, it’s very important that you put these locations in the right area.”

Council member Donnie Johnson told the Woodward Talk that Ferndale is committed to investments in sustainable infrastructure and the city will continue to look for opportunities to expand its infrastructure where it’s needed and based on demand, while also looking for funding opportunities to help cover the costs of these stations.

““It’s really important that we keep inching forward on climate change mitigation and sustainability practices,” he said. “We’re constantly looking for funding opportunities, partnerships that can help us not only install them, but keep them operational and ensure that they’re available for not just residents, but also visitors, people who may come to Ferndale to work or play. So, I think we’ll continue to seek opportunities, particularly grants and partnerships with local businesses and things like that who may be willing to install these and make them available to the public.”