SOUTH RIVER–Sustainable Jersey has awarded the borough a $10,000 grant to fund the installment of an electric vehicle charging station.
Borough Administrator Jack Layne Jr. said that the station supplies electric energy for the recharging of electric vehicles. The borough will procure a dual Electric Vehicle Charging Station, meaning that it basically will be a unit that can recharge two vehicles simultaneously.
“We will procure the electric vehicle charging station from a specified vendor. The borough just received the initial $5,000 payment from Sustainable New Jersey this week,” Layne said.
Sustainable Jersey announced on Jan. 23, that the borough had been awarded the $10,000 grant funded by the Gardinier Environmental Fund, according to Layne.
“The Borough of South River is currently in the process of revitalizing our downtown business district to benefit both our local businesses and our residents. We recently renovated our municipal parking lot and are working with the local businesses to improve the parking opportunities for visitors to our local stores and restaurants,” Council President Shawn Haussermann said in a prepared statement. “A charging station would be a fantastic new option to offer visitors to the local area, as it would provide an additional incentive for the owners of electric vehicles to ‘shop in South River.'”
The charging station will be installed at the municipal parking lot on Obert Street, according to Layne.
“The Gardinier Environmental Fund is committed to conserving the earth’s energy resources and enhancing renewable energy measures,” Gene Wentzel, Gardinier Environmental Fund president, said in a prepared statement. “We are proud to stand alongside Sustainable Jersey, and to continue to fund worthy projects that supports our mutual goals in New Jersey.”
Layne said that the borough began considering a charging station during the fall of 2017.
“We are making efforts to install the electric charging station by the end of this month or early March,” Layne said.
The borough is considering charging a fee of $1 per hour of usage, according to Layne.
The charging station will be discussed during future council meetings, but no special meeting is scheduled, according to Layne.
“As the Borough of South River is one of the very few municipalities in the state to own and operate its own electric utility, it would make a statement that South River is on the cutting edge of welcoming the future to our small, historic downtown,” Haussermann said in the statement.
For more information, visit www.sustainablejersey.com/about/.
Contact Vashti Harris at vharris@newspapermediagroup.com.
