Design 2147 CEO Sisto Martello recently had the opportunity to speak with Robert Familiar, Senior Corporate Affairs Manager for Revel, about what New York City property owners need to know to make informed decisions about electric vehicle charging stations.
Q. “Electric vehicle charging station” is a term that we’re hearing more and more. Are there different types of electric vehicle charging stations?
A. We like to say we’re building the gas stations of the future — off-street, public 24/7, and a lot of fast chargers so drivers can pull in, fuel, and get back on the road in minutes, not hours. We are not putting a handful of chargers in a grocery store parking lot, Revel installs anywhere from 10 to 60 fast chargers on a site. That kind of volume is an assurance of reliability for drivers, so they know when they come to one of our stations, there will be a working charger available for them.
Revel is not in the business of Level 2 curbside charging, also called overnight charging. It’s an important part of a charging ecosystem in a city, but it’s a different use case than what we’re targeting.
Q. What concerns do owners tend to have about adding electric vehicle charging stations?
A. We’re building expensive infrastructure with a long-term forecast. To make that work, we need a lease for 10, 20, 30 plus years. When we first started looking for sites in 2020, there were certainly concerns about the expectation of revenue from owners because this was uncharted water. But now that we have a few years on record and owners can see the kind of throughput we can achieve at a charging station, and at the same time EV adoption in cities is really climbing fast, that concern has pretty much disappeared.
Q. If a property owner would like to add electric vehicle charging stations, what are the ideal site conditions?
A. Number one is access to power. Fast charging stations like ours need a significant amount of energy from the grid, several megawatts worth. If a site already has that kind of power available, that’s a true unicorn. We can get that station live in a matter of months. Most sites aren’t like that, and we need to work with Con Edison to do a power upgrade, which takes some time.
The other main condition we look for, which is pretty obvious, is whether it’s convenient for drivers to use. Ideally that means it’s adjacent to or near a major roadway and has comfortable entry and exit points.
Q. What infrastructure has to be in place to be able to successfully add charging stations?
A. It’s all about power infrastructure. Again, more than likely a site needs a power upgrade. We just opened the first ever charging station in New York City with a power upgrade, our 1.5 MW site on Pier 36 in Lower Manhattan. If you go there, you’ll see (lifted on steel beams because it’s on a pier and has to be above the floodplain) big metal cabinets holding switchgear, rectifiers, transformers, etc. We’ve had that lease for over two years, it just opened in September. Actual construction took a few months The rest of the time was spent on assessing and permitting with ConEd and the city to bring that kind of power to the site.
Q. For owners looking to replace traditional parking spots with electric charging stations, is it a one-for-one swap out, or do charging stations require more space?
A. It depends on the design, but the short answer is, for light-duty charging, yes it’s a one-for-one swap. You can set it up so there is one charging unit for one parking spot, or alternatively many chargers can be equipped with dual cables so they can sit between two spots and charge two EVs simultaneously.
Q. What are the most important things developers should know about electric charging stations?
A. At the risk of sounding repetitive, it’s the time scale. Developing a station typically takes years. And infrastructure of any kind is a commitment. When we build a fast charging station, we want that site to be open and operating for many years, otherwise the capital investment isn’t worthwhile.
Q. If the electric vehicle charging technology changes over time, how easy is it to retrofit or swap out charging stations?
A. Our stations are future-proofed, meaning we are installing chargers with speeds much higher than most commercial EVs can even use right now. That’s because we want this infrastructure to be relevant for the next 10 plus years. We also design sites so that, when new technology does come out, we could invest in higher charging speeds. Same as the first time, though, the main barrier is going to be the capital expense.
Q. What routine maintenance is required for electric vehicle charging stations?
A. Fast chargers are fairly complicated pieces of equipment. Things will go wrong and they’ll need maintenance. The good news is, for one, they are getting much, much more reliable. And two, suppliers are much better at getting you parts when you need them. This is all part of the industry maturing.
Q. What does the electric vehicle charging station of the future look like?
A. The future is about improving the customer experience as we get out of a world of first adopters and move toward mass adoption. Speeds will definitely keep getting faster. Other quality of life elements will streamline too, especially software. Every charging company has an app, that’s not fun for consumers when they’re going in between different networks. We’re looking hard at amenities too, what’s most useful to a driver charging at our station for 15 or 20 minutes? Bathrooms are a must. Other features like coffee shops, convenience stores, car cleaning equipment, or lounges could be important for drivers too.
