Albany Climate Action Committee Meeting December 18, 2924

The Albany Climate Action Committee held an informative meeting on sustainable transportation and related infrastructure on Wednesday, December 18th. The main topics of this meeting included strategies to support the installation of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations for multifamily dwellings and how to create incentives for people to use public transport and E-bikes.

After briefly touching on the minutes from the last meeting, the Committee visited some quick announcements. This included the fact that applications for the Albany Climate Action Committee are open once more, meaning those interested in becoming a member of the board now have the opportunity to apply.

The meeting then pivoted to one of its main topics, that being the installation of EV charging stations for multifamily buildings. The board’s staff liaison Michelle Plouse gave an overview of a pilot program that involved installing EV chargers into three buildings occupied by multiple families across the city of Albany to gain insight on what this process would be like for other buildings. She then reflected on the main findings of this program. This included the unlikely willingness most building owners would have to pay for the installation of these chargers on their property. When surveyed, most owners indicated they would be willing to pay at most $5,000 for installation, while the total cost would likely be far more for this kind of project. Additionally, through the case study, it was found that most owners had very little existing knowledge of the process of implementing EV chargers into buildings and about EV chargers in general.

“I heard from a handful of owners that they never would have pursued EV chargers if it wasn’t for this program,” Plouse remarked. Lastly, Plouse shared that many buildings in Albany likely would not have the electrical capacity to power these chargers, reflecting on issues encountered while installing chargers into one building with an especially low electric capacity.

During discussion, the Committee agreed the ideas presented by Plouse were a good start in planning how EV chargers could be more successfully implemented into multifamily buildings. With this, committee members shared some of their concerns about the proposed project.

Member Mark Meldgin questioned whether the EV chargers installed would actually be used by tenants, and said he was concerned about whether installing the expensive machines would be worth it in the long run. After hearing the Committee’s comments and concerns, Plouse resolved to continue working on and revising her ideas into the New Year.

The meeting then moved to their second main item on the agenda, possible incentives to increase the usage of E-bikes and public transit. Plouse briefly presented several existing incentives that could be more widely used in the city of Albany. These included covering part of the cost for individuals looking to purchase E-Bikes and establishing programs to help cover a portion of transit expenses.

As they moved to discussion, Member Katharine Bierce expressed her support for expanding transit cost support programs in Albany, citing her own positive experiences as a student who used them. This sentiment was echoed by all other Committee members. Some reservations were shared by members of the board on how E-Bike cost assistance could be provided fairly to members of the public from different socioeconomic statuses and that it would be difficult to successfully implement this kind of program at such a large scale. Plouse thanked Committee members for their feedback and they resolved to revisit the subject in the future.

In all, this Albany Climate Action Committee meeting was helpful and informative. Plouse’s presentations on the installation of EV chargers into multifamily buildings and E-Bike/ transit incentive options helped provide valuable insight for both the committee and community members watching.

–Isabelle Oppelt