The Classic Center and Athens-Clarke County Introduce New Electric Car Charging Station
April 14, 2015 -- ATHENS, Ga. - The Classic Center, in partnership with Athens-Clarke County, will debut an electric car charging station located at the Thomas Street entrance of the facility on Wednesday, April 15 at 3 p.m. with a ribbon cutting ceremony.
The station is a Level 3 Fast Charger which has the ability to fully charge the average electric car in just 30 minutes. The next fastest charging station of its kind takes four hours to complete the same charge. With both CHAdeMO and SAE plugs included, the charging station will be able to serve the entire electric vehicle fast charging market. It is the first of its kind in downtown Athens and is the only fast charger currently in town besides the Nissan dealership near Bogart.
The charging equipment for the Classic Center was donated by Nissan Motor Corporation and funding for the installation was provided by the Charge Georgia Program administered by the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority. This installation is part of a recent Athens-Clarke County effort to install nearly $100,000 in publically-available electric vehicle charging equipment with a 3% local match.
"This is a really unique opportunity for Athens." said Andrew Saunders, Athens-Clarke County Environmental Coordinator. "We now tap into the Atlanta electric vehicle market by allowing our visitors to come into town for an event, top off their cars during a break, and then return to their homes without any range anxiety. Atlanta has been identified as the fastest growing electric vehicle market and has the second largest number of registered electric vehicles in the nation. Until the deployment of the charger at The Classic Center, it has been very difficult to attract electric vehicle drivers from Atlanta."
The charging station operates off of a system called Greenlots, allowing users to monitor when it is available, its operational status and how much it costs. The new downtown station will be free to users for the first six months and will be available 24 hours per day, seven days per week.
"This is an exciting sustainable opportunity for our customers, guests, local residents and the entire Northeast Georgia region," said Philip Verrastro, Assistant Executive Director of The Classic Center. "We are proud to offer this unique service to the growing number of electric vehicles we see visiting our venue and the downtown business district."
In March 2013, ConventionSouth Magazine presented The Classic Center with a Green Meetings certification. The certification program recognizes cities, hotels, and meeting facilities that provide eco-friendly and energy-wise options for meetings and events. Over the past few years, The Classic Center has expanded activities to include the Green Life Expo and the Alternative Vehicles Roadshow. The recent Classic Center expansion is currently under review to obtain LEED green building certification from the US Green Building Council.
To learn more about The Classic Center, visit ClassicCenter.com.
CONTACT:
Elizabeth Austin
Marketing Manager | The Classic Center
300 N. Thomas Street | Athens, GA 30601
706.357.4435 p | 706.548.0870 f