Park District debuts new lightpost EV charging station in Oak Park

Chicago Tribune

21 hours ago

A new electric vehicle charging station powered on recently in Oak Park.
There's not much to see — it's really just a light pole, and if you're driving past the Ridgeland Common Recreation Complex you'll probably miss it. But the idea behind it is new, and it could be big.
Voltpost, the company behind the little station, believes that if their station catches on, devices like this will supercharge the EV market by giving anyone with access to a parking spot next to an equipped light pole the means to charge their car.
Typically, EV owners would fully charge their batteries at home or, if they're lucky, at work. But for people who do not own a home with a charging station or live in an apartment or condo without a station and don't work near a station, getting a full charge can be tricky. It takes hours to fully charge an EV battery and charging stations are usually in big public parking lots or garages, often not close to home.
But most people live near a street light, and this is where Voltpost comes in.
'We are retrofitting existing street lights and transforming them into level two electric vehicle chargers,' explained Jeff Prosserman, the company's co-founder and CEO.
Lamp posts don't need much new technology — they're already wired for high voltage, so communities don't need to tear up streets or parking lots to install new charging stations. Aside from some new signs and a new light post, nothing has changed at the new Oak Park charging station in the recreation complex parking lot.
Prosserman said he's hopeful other communities around the country will see Oak Park's station as an example of what's possible.
'It's an important milestone in both Voltpost and the Oak Park community and it's an important step in sustainable and equitable transmission,' Prosserman said.
Chris Lindgren, the deputy director of properties and planning for the Park District which is hosting the new station, said the district already offered traditional charging stations, and adding another, especially without much work, just made sense.
'To me, it was really exciting because it was a very innovative and sustainable way to utilize existing infrastructure,' Lindgren said. 'That was the unique draw from the very beginning.'
He said the village didn't have to pay for any of the retrofitting or parts. EV owners are charged a rate starting at a quarter a kilowatt hour and that covers maintenance as well as the electricity. In the end, Lindgren said, the Park District doesn't pay anything, and they don't make any money on the station, either.
'We really aren't in it to make revenue on it,' he noted. 'We believe it should be a service to the community. We understand this is the path forward and we want this to be available publicly.'
The light pole charger is a level two, meaning it runs on 240 volts as opposed to the 120 volts at most residences and a full charge still takes at least about four hours. But if every other light post had an outlet, an electric vehicle could be parked nearby all day long and get fully charged anywhere in the community.
'It's more about getting into the fabric of communities,' Prosserman explained, noting that fast-charging stations can't be deployed everywhere due to infrastructure limitations. At present, most any charging station is level two.
'Level two is seen as the backbone of charging,' he said.
Prosserman said his company is in talks with other Illinois communities so motorists can expect to see more small light post charging stations in the coming years. He praised Oak Park leaders for their willingness to work with his company on the initiative.
'Oak Park was very thoughtful as a partner,' he said.