Eight public electric vehicle battery chargers will be installed in the parking lot on the east side of the Princeton Shopping Center on North Harrison Street.
The Princeton Planning Board approved iONNA LLC’s application to install the charging stations at its July 17 meeting. They will be placed in the parking lot, near the two main buildings on the east side of the shopping center.
The eight EV battery charging stations will be in addition to two existing ones at the Princeton Shopping Center. The two charging stations are on the west side of the shopping center, near the entrance to the courtyard.
Eight vehicle manufacturers formed a joint venture to provide EV charging stations, leading to the formation of iONNA LLC in 2023. The company has more than 1,100 charging bays in locations in 30 states, mostly along the East Coast and the West Coast.
The approved plan calls for installing four dual-point chargers that can accommodate eight EVs. The Level 3 fast chargers are not restricted to a vehicle brand and can handle NACS and CCS connectors. Two stations are set aside for NACS connectors and six for CCS connectors.
The Level 3 fast chargers are the fastest ones on the market, iONNA LLC representative Sarah MacLean told the Planning Board. They can recharge an EV battery to 80% in about 20 to 30 minutes. EV owners can find the chargers through an app on their cellphones.
“It is very easy to find (the charging stations),” MacLean said.
The public chargers will bring value to the Princeton Shopping Center, MacLean said. Vehicle owners can shop at one of the retail stores or eat at one of the restaurants while they are waiting for their vehicle’s battery to be charged.
Installation of the new charging stations requires the removal of 10 parking stalls. The total number of parking spaces will be reduced from 960 spaces to 958 spaces, for a net loss of two parking spaces, according to a memorandum from Princeton Planning Department Assistant Director Nathan Foote.
Foote’s July 10 memorandum to the Planning Board states that iONNA LLC’s application is generally consistent with the Princeton Master Plan and its goals to provide electric vehicle infrastructure that is accessible and equitably distributed throughout the community.
An additional recommendation of the town’s mobility plan is to prioritize siting of electric vehicle charging stations at critical facilities and key destinations, Foote wrote in his memorandum. The Princeton Shopping Center is an important commercial center in town.
The Princeton Environmental Commission endorsed the plan to install the EV charging stations in its June 24 memorandum. It will advance the goals of the town’s Climate Action Plan and the Green Building and Environmentally Sustainability Element of the Princeton Master Plan.
