Electric Cars Can Charge at the Bloomingdale Library

Bloomingdale residents eager to purchase one of the new electric cars being introduced this fall won't have to worry about finding a place to charge it.

The Bloomingdale Regional Library, 1906 Bloomingdale Ave., Valrico, is one of 10 sites throughout the county that is getting electric charging stations in October as part of a pilot program.

Led by Commissioner Mark Sharpe, county commissioners approved a pilot project to sponsor the charging stations to jumpstart developing the infrastructure for the anticipated increase in electric vehicle use by consumers seeking cleaner and cheaper energy alternatives.

The ChargePoint charging stations themselves, as well as maintenance, are free during this pilot project. Hillsborough County will pay for their installation and electrical usage.

"Hillsborough County received the charging stations from Chargepoint through a grant from the federal government," said Randy M. Klindworth, energy manager for the county's Facilities Management Services. "Each charging station is capable of charging two vehicles at a time, one on fast charge and one on slow charge."

Each charging station can be activated by ChargePass Card, credit card or using a smart phone. If using a smart phone, there is an application for the phone to show all charging stations in the area and if they are being used at that time, said Klindworth.

The Bloomingdale charge stations will be located in front of two parking spaces near the air-conditioning units on the east side of the building.

The stations originally were scheduled to be installed at the Brandon Regional Library, however, that library, which suffers from a shortage of parking, couldn't give up two parking spaces for the electric charge stations.

Electric car drivers also will find charging stations at the following locations:

• two at the County’s Pierce Street Parking Garage, 319 N. Pierce St., Tampa
• two at the St. Pete Times Forum, 401 Channelside Drive, Tampa
• one at the Environmental Protection Commission of Hillsborough County, 3629 Queen Palm Drive, Tampa
• one at the Jimmie B. Keel Regional Library, 2902 W. Bearss Ave., Tampa
• one at the Jan Kaminis Platt Regional Library, 3910 S. Manhattan Ave., Tampa
• one at the Town ‘N County Commons, 7606 Paula Drive
• one at  Hillsborough Community College, 4001 W. Tampa Bay Blvd., Tampa

“It's important to note that for every charging station that's installed, there's a creation of three jobs," added Sharpe.
 
Each station will be able to charge electric vehicles from all major car makers.

“Cleaner energy produced right here in America will, over time, help make us less dependent on foreign oil,” said Sharpe. “The way we drive and how we get our energy is going to change as well, and we’ve got to be on the cutting edge.”

The pilot program will end in January 2014 and, at that time, commissioners can decide if they will keep the existing units and pay for their maintenance, upkeep and connection to the charging station network.

To see where all the charge stations are across the country, logon to www.mychargepoint.net.

To learn about all the Green Hillsborough efforts, go to www.hillsboroughcounty.org/green/.