Palm Coast and County Snub Role in EV Charging Stations In Shocking Rebuff to a Green Energy Grant

June 9, 2023 | FlaglerLive | 17 Comments

Partisanship, misinformation, false assumptions and free-market ideology all played a role in Palm Coast and county government this week rejecting a partnership in what would have been a potential $15 million federal grant to build electric vehicle charging stations at various public locations in cities and the county.

Contradicting its own Strategic Action Plan approved just last month, the council snubbed applying for a federal grant that would have brought from $500,000 to $15 million to the city, potentially required no spending match from the city, added electric vehicle charging stations at various locations in Palm Coast, Bunnell, Flagler Beach and the county, and potentially opened a source of new revenue.

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The grant is part of the federal government's $2.5 billion Charging and Fueling Infrastructure program, of which $700 million is available this year. The program was part of the Biden Administration's infrastructure bill and its plan to build 500,000 EV chargers in its push toward EV car sales making up 50 percent of the market by the end of the decade.

That association with Biden appears to have had a direct effect on the openly derisive way county commissioners addressed the grant proposal on Monday, and, with one exception, the more coded way Palm Coast City Council members did on Tuesday. The two panels are entirely Republican.

Either way, the end result was that both governments torpedoed a potentially multi-million dollar grant with very few strings attached.

The proposal failed to garner a vote at the council despite Mayor David Alfin's plucky efforts to win consensus, despite his reminder to his colleagues that "you currently have all unanimously signed off, voted for, a vision a pillar of priority in your Strategic Action Plan process, of which this is a part of," despite the council's routine direction to staff to be on the hunt for grants, and despite what appears to have been herculean efforts on the par of the city's new (and first) Chief Sustainability and Resiliency Officer Maeven Rogers, to craft what she thought would have been a slam-dunk proposal in line with a city that had so embraced green initiatives that it has a sustainability and resiliency officer.     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});"I made sure to listen and understand what your goals were," Rogers told the council at the beginning of her presentation, her very first in her role. She was a different kind of green, as she would soon find out. "Something that kind of kept repeating itself was EV charging grants, and how do we get there? So today I’m very excited to present this opportunity to you that I think really complements the goals of this council and can really complement our residents as well and provide some resources."

She had no idea, though the County Commission had laid the groundwork for anyone in her position to be shellshocked by the end of her presentation.

"It goes right along with the current administration's push to put everything in electric," County Commission Chairman Greg Hansen had said with a measure of derision.

"Right. This is the green wave," Commissioner Dave Sullivan said.

Council member Ed Danko, who never misses aa chance to equate the Biden administration with some of the nation's darkest days, echoed his county counterparts. "A lot of us are tired of paying excessive taxes for somebody's Green New Deal," Danko said. "I need to see examples of how this has worked. I need to see people, businesses that want to come in and make this commitment and this investment for long term. I need to see a lot more than just a federal grant." Council member Theresa Pontieri saw it likewise.

Routinely, council members and commission members talk of grants in glowing, lustful terms–whether state or federal grants. Not in this case, as some repeatedly said grants are still tax dollars.     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});"I feel like if it had nothing to do with EV charging, that this wouldn't be as big of a infrastructure question or like a council issue," Klufas said, apologizing to Rogers and Cote for "putting you through the ringer." He continued: "This is why they we have them as staff and their professional opinion that they’re going to be able to make this work. I feel like if they’re willing to put themselves out there, why aren't we willing to as a city to say yes, and potentially will actually make more money than we have today and maybe be able to use that to provide city services instead of raising taxes?"

Alfin, at the end of his rope, opted not to attempt a vote and directed Rogers and Carl Cote, the city's construction and engineering director, to bring back a grant that would include a private partner. Cote seemed to lose his breath, telling Alfin and the rest of the council that grants require such partnerships to be put out to bid first. It didn't make a difference. Elected officials and staffers were at cross-purposes all along, though by no means unanimously so.

At the county, Commissioners Donald O’Brien and Andy Dance were fully supportive of backing the grant as full partners of the city, even agreeing to having EV charging stations at three county locations. They were outvoted by Hansen, Sullivan and Pennington, the latter going against her ostensibly green credentials in the name of free enterprise. At the city, Alfin was supportive of the grant, as was Nick Klufas, the only local elected official who drives a fully-electric car (a Tesla). But Danko and Pontieri were adamantly opposed, absent "more data." Council member Cathy Heighter did not say a single word in the more than hour-long discussion.

Rogers tried again and again to convince council members, but with mere evidence. A smog of partisanship proved insurmountable.

"There isn't a better deal right now," Rogers told Alfin, but to no end.     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});There are just 25 EV charging stations in the entire county, but 3,600 residents have EVs, according to Rogers (a figure Alfin called "grossly overstated." Klufas strongly disagreed.) "We are in an EV desert," Rogers said, more so in an emergency.

On Monday, County Special Projects Director Holly Albanese and Rogers appeared before the commission to pitch the proposal. The minimum award would have been $500,000, with a maximum of $15 million possible.

The 20 percent match allowed for whichever private entity the local coalition partners with, "they would pay our share of the 20 percent, and they’re the ones who would get the revenue, because this would reate revenue." That entity would also pay the utility costs. The local governments would not have to invest any money.

"Always having more infrastructure seems like it's a win-win. And it seems like the state is very clearly putting an emphasis on this by offering an 80-20 split," Klufas said.

Palm Coast at that point–in Roger's assumption–would have selected to pay the 20 percent match and collect the revenue, what was estimated at $316 a month per "Level 2" charger. (A fast-charging station would cost around $90,000, more than double a Level 2 station. Fast-charging could get a battery 80 percent charged in 20 minutes. Level 2 would do the job in four to six hours. See details here.)     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});The Flagler County administration had identified three county locations for potential charging stations: the public library on Palm Coast Parkway, the county airport and the Government Services Center, with eyes on a future location at the yet-to-be-built tourist center on State Road 100. Palm Coast's plan would have had its additional stations at the expanded tennis center and southern recreation center off of Belle Terre Parkway, at Holland Park, and additional charges at City hall, including some fast chargers.

Charging stations could have been located on any public grounds–parking, parks, schools–and even private grounds that are partnering with the coalition. A charging station could have been located at an apartment complex, for example. "The comprehensive approach fosters sustainability, supports economic growth and improves the overall quality of life for visitors and residents alike," Albanese said, with some support from Dance and O’Brien.

"In simple terms, this to me is just a way to market the city, the county, especially as far as tourism goes, it's it's the main intent is to make this a destination," Dance said.

Rogers tried to make the case for electrification as a much faster, more reliable, less volatile way to be energy independent while benefiting local economic development. "If we provide the service for our residents, they can put money back into the local economy, not at the Shell gas station. So that's a wonderful thing," she said. "We do know that the transition of government fleets to electric will save money, it saves maintenance costs, it saves fuel costs, there is no longer oil changes." All major car manufacturers are developing EVs, with mandates pushing them to do so, making it a matter of time before EVs reach a critical level.

But Rogers was like the oracle describing a future already happening in many communities across the country, but describing it to an audience still wedded to the 1950s’ way of looking at transportation.     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});Sullivan in particular made one false or misleading statement after another.

He argued that no one in "low cost housing areas" can afford $50,000 electric vehicles, that government shouldn't be subsidizing the electric vehicle industry, and that no one buys used electric cars. Sullivan's claims are misleading at best, false in most regards, and ill-informed.

In fact, the average price of gas-powered vehicles at the end of 2022 was just under $50,000. The average price for an EV was $61,488, according to Kelley Blue Book. But averages mask the range of more affordable vehicles in both categories. For example, GM is launching its Equinox EV this fall for $30,000. The price is still a few thousand dollars more than the cheaper, gas-powered Equinox–but not after government incentives and subsidies are included, making the electric car cheaper. The car becomes cheaper yet when considering the lower cost of maintenance and energy to run it.

"I really don't like the government getting involved in this. It just it just it's too unfair," he said. " "Supporting this might not be a good citizen thing to do, because it's going to eventually probably hurt the EV industry by giving them these continual handouts from the government." Again, grossly inaccurate statements that ignore the estimated $20billion a year in subsidies the federal government provides to the oil, gas and coal industry (80 percent of it to the oil and gas sector). That's a conservative estimate. The International Monetary Fund places "implied" and direct global subsidies at $5.9 trillion in 2020 alone, $660 billion of it in the United States.

"I don't think anybody's going to buy used electric vehicles," he said. In fact, the EV used-car market is surging.

"I am absolutely sure that if EVs over time become economically feasible, that the gas stations like Wawa will provide this service," Sullivan said–again, a deep misunderstanding of how EV charging works, and how different it will be from the notion of "gas stations," where a fill-up takes a couple of minutes. EV charging takes place mostly at home, but secondarily, it takes place–and will take place, as projections show–at work and in public places, such as parks and shopping centers, where a one- or two-hour stay is plenty of time recharge a car for the trip home, or a bit more.

Hansen was also inaccurate when he said: "If people start buying electric cars–and they’re not buying them now." In fact, EV sales are booming, with an annual growth rate of 18 percent expected for each of the next five years. He, too, thought that gas stations would fill in the market for EV stations.     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});O’Brien said EV owners will charge their cars at their house, but visitors may need EV stations. The only burden of the proposal on the county would be to devote one or two spots for EV stations in public parking lots. But Hansen, Pennington and Sullivan were adamantly against EV stations on public grounds.

"They’re giving some private entity the use of public property. That bothers me," Hansen said–again, not necessarily the case. Palm Coast in its original plan would have provided its own 20 percent match so as to recoup EV charging costs, and have enough to invest in more charging stations.

Dance motioned to partner with Palm Coast and issue a supportive letter. The vote failed. The commission agreed only to a letter of support, but that became moot when the council refused to so much as apply for the grant.

Ironically, Palm Coast City Hall has had its own, free EV charging station for eight years.

Pontieri claimed the existing chargers at City Hall were " almost always empty," which drew a quick correction from Alfin: "I’m probably here more than anybody and it's almost always full," he said.

Pontieri persisted: "I guess that's my question is what what is the actual demand for it?"

"So we’re on a desert island. And you’re asking what is the demand in a place where something doesn't exist? I mean, you can't possibly know that," Alfin said.

"You can project it, though. The Tesla Model Y is the best selling car in the world," Klufas said. (He is right.)     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});Past the five-year mark, Pontieri said costs would mount. Rogers said either revenue would offset future costs, or the stations could be removed at no cost to the city. Curiously, there's been no objection to the EV charging stations that the city has offered, for free, for eight years. Still, she and Danko were opposed to government providing a service they see as potentially undercutting private industry.

"We need a private enterprise partner to come in and say we’ll partner with the city, we’re an individual business, you use your grant, we’ll run the business and will split the profits with you," Danko said.

Cote and Rogers thought that's what they were proposing, only the grant would have to be applied for, first. By the end of her hour before the council, Rogers had gone from green-eyed gratefulness to exasperation, and it showed: "Mayor Alfin, if I can ask," she said. "I was under the impression that the EV chargers were part of the Strategic Action Plan. And so if I can have better direction from City Council of what their vision is for EV infrastructure so I can make sure that I bring you the best possible option."

"I think the direction was relatively clear," Alfin replied. It had not been, nor was his direction then, as, contradictions aside, it did not differ much from what Rogers had just presented: "Find us an option, hopefully with a grant or maybe not with a grant, maybe with a private investor that's willing to put these EV charging stations in without us infringing on private enterprise. I think that's at the end of the day, [what] we want to provide our residents. Two things, one, the service and if at all possible. A more diverse revenue stream if you could accomplish those two things. I don't really care if it involves a grant or not. I know a grant is one pathway. But if this business model, is that positive, then there might be a private investor out there. We just haven't found them yet. I am strapped with a timeline. I’m uncomfortable rushing to a decision in such a short period of time. So I need everybody on city council to to agree that that would be the staff direction for this evening."

The council ended its discussion on that short-circuitry.