Resolution pertaining to Open-Air Parking Licenses and Electric Vehicle Charging Outlets
Petitioner: C. Scott Ananian, TMM 10, (correspondent) Jesse Gray, TMM 10
Special Town Meeting, November 2019
One of the surprising findings of the Electric Vehicle Charging study committee was the large percentage of "garage orphans": Brookline residents who face obstacles switching to an electric vehicle because of the lack of a dedicated charger. The solution to the garage orphan challenge in our town must be multifold, including ensuring that Major Impact Projects in town provide sufficient charging capacity in parking structures, supporting a renters/condo-owners "bill of rights" to ensure they are able to install chargers at their own expense, and providing public chargers, for example in town lots and in town-provided overnight parking, to accommodate those without their own dedicated charger. This article addresses one additional piece of that challenge, in attempting to increase the number of rented parking spaces which provide electric vehicle charging facilities. A small pilot program of, for example, $10,000 could provide $500 rebates to the first 20 open-air parking license holder applicants, and would provide feedback on whether this incentive would be effective in increasing EV charger availability in our town.
It is time to broaden the adoption of Electric Vehicles to those who rent or who cannot afford to own property with dedicated parking.