‘The majority of the power is coming from coal,’ City Councilman Cody Kennedy says
Electric vehicle operators will no longer have a free ride from the City of Grand Junction.
City Council unanimously supported the implementation of a fee structure Wednesday, similar to fees implemented by some other local governments to cover public expenses related to charging stations.
“I used one of the EV charging apps and there are 40 some odd places in town where you can charge for free,” said City Councilman Scott Beilfuss, also indicating he didn’t support a free-use structure.
The proposed rates are comparable to what a gas or diesel-powered vehicle owner might expect to pay for metered parking, City Manager Greg Caton said.
“There is a significant amount of public investment in this, and we’ve heard feedback from our community members that it shouldn’t be free,” he said. “There shouldn’t be an expectation of free charging provided by your local government.”
The adopted fees include a connection charge of up to $2, a maximum peak kilowatt-hour fee of 55 cents, and an “overstay” fee of up to 20 cents per minute outside of a 15-minute grace period.
“Charging is super cheap compared to gas,” said Mayor Pro Tem Abe Herman, who claims to own an electric vehicle.
The rates are intended to create a “breakeven” on public investments of infrastructure and electricity, Caton said.
Grand Junction is powered by Xcel Energy, he said, in response to a question as to whether the electricity charging the electric vehicles was clean energy. He estimates Xcel uses 42% clean energy sources.
“The majority of the power is coming from coal,” said City Councilman Cody Kennedy. “Primarily we are fossil fuel-oriented. We’re not just going to write a blank check to EVs.”
Beilfuss endorsed an economic development angle to fair pricing at charging stations.
“If we have good rates downtown, they’ll come downtown,” he said.
Added Herman: “If there was a charging station where I hang around the gas station for 15-30 minutes, compared to a slightly more expensive one downtown where you can visit restaurants, I’m always going to choose the one in a nicer location.”
That’s not an option in more rural areas of the state. For instance, if an electric vehicle charging station exists anywhere in Eastern Colorado, there may only be a couple in a town and often they are at a truck stop.
“When you get into rural areas, they are at a gas station or a Wendy’s and that’s not where I typically want to hang out,” Herman said. “The location for me, and I think a lot of EV owners, is a bigger factor than price.”
City Councilman Jason Nguyen agreed location is a consideration above price.
“When we are charging, location is a big factor – how are we going to spend the next 20-30 minutes?” he asked. “I’m much more willing to spend a little more to have a better experience.”