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Before long, Kokomo will be a hub for electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing as two battery plants come online for StarPlus Energy. But the city’s parks are ahead of the curve. Early adopters of the “green” technology now have a place to recharge their vehicles as well as their minds and spirits.
According to Mayor Tyler Moore, the city entered an agreement with General Motors Corp. at the end of 2023 to install EV charging stations in four parks across the community. He identified Highland Park, Northwest Park, Championship Park, and the downtown dog park along South Main Street as the recipients of the stations.
“Erik’s Chevrolet was given the opportunity to partner with the city and basically help fund the establishment of charging stations in public areas,” said Moore. And so, Erik's helped purchase six charging stations that we've put in the parks.”
As of late February, the charging stations were not yet fully functional, the mayor explained. Software installation and connection to the electrical grid still needed to be completed. Once working, the stations will be metered and will feature universal charging hook-ups. Moore isn’t aware of whether the chargers will be compatible with every EV on the market, but that is the intent.
“I know there have been a few issues already that have been addressed,” said Moore. “You know, somebody leaving the plug in and trying to leave or other damage, but I don't think we need to do any upgrades except for the software to get them connected.”
Moore is particularly pleased that Kokomo is adding public EV charging stations in the community. Currently, the parking garages in downtown and a Tesla-sponsored charging station in the Meijer parking lot along East Markland Avenue are the most visible chargers in the city. Adding stations to the parks is another outward step to help usher in a new technological age.
The new additions also underscore the methods by which an EV charging grid will become a reality in the U.S. It will take partnerships between taxpayers and EV manufacturers to ease adoption and usage of EVs by the general public.
“I think the government will have a role in making them available,” said Moore. “With public parking lots and spaces, as EVs continue to be more prevalent, we'll look at putting more of them in there.
“And a handful of developers building here already recognize there's a certain percentage of the population that will have electric cars. A lot of their development plans include a couple charging stations. The private sector recognizes the growing need, especially developers of multifamily housing.”
Moore mentioned that the latest development plan for a downtown hotel and conference center along East Superior Street now includes as many as six dedicated parking spaces to EV charging. And, yes, the project is still on the schedule.
“We’re closer than we've ever been,” said Moore, who explained that the previous developer, Dora, put its involvement on hold, citing a changing economic climate. The city wasn’t willing to entertain another delay.
“You can't wait because we've got money that's been hanging out for seven years now,” said Moore. “So, SSG of Lafayette, they've assembled a team that seems committed to making it happen.”
Moore clarified that the city erroneously thought that it had until the end of March to break ground and begin construction or lose state funding. Instead, the city has until March 31 to submit a continued letter of intent to the Indiana Economic Development Corp., stating the progress of the project and the identity of the developer.
Before that project breaks ground, however, the city has another very large project that must be addressed. It must install a new sanitary wastewater line from downtown to the wastewater treatment plant on West Markland Avenue.
The project, which will take three years to fully complete, is expected to create significant disruptions along the planned path of the line. The city engineering department settled on running the line along the north side of the Wildcat Creek. Because it will run through the proposed hotel property, installation will begin there this spring.
“We’ll start around the hotel and convention center this year,” said Moore. “We’ll install in Foster Park in 2025 and complete the line to the plant in 2026.”
While the city will attempt to minimize disruptions, installation in Foster Park and further west will necessitate the excavation of the Walk of Excellence, making westward travel impossible. Moore said the city is exploring detour options for 2025 as installation takes place.
The sewer line is another huge expense the city has had to incur to upgrade its wastewater treatment system. With a price tag expected to be well north of $20 million, it is the second such expenditure in recent days. Citizens endured nearly a year-long closure of Markland Avenue in 2023 as remediation of contaminated soils drove increases in cost and time.
The city raised wastewater rates last year in response to the added expenses. Moore does not anticipate having to do so a second time, as there appears to be sufficient capital to cover the line extension.