Saranac Lake to add 30 electric vehicle charging ports

State grant boosts community’s ability to expand EV infrastructure

By Mike Lynch

Saranac Lake will be bolstering its green infrastructure in the coming years with the addition of 30 electric vehicle charging ports.  

The village was one of eight North Country local governments to receive funding through the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s municipal zero-emission vehicle infrastructure grants program, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced earlier this week. A total of $4.85 million was awarded statewide. 

“It’s a great opportunity for village residents who might not have the ability to have a charger at their house, and I think it’s going to really attract a lot of visitors to the area,” said Saranac Lake’s Community Development Director Katrina Glynn. “People who have electric vehicles look for places to visit that have chargers, and I think this is really going to put us on the map.” 

Saranac Lake currently has two EV charging ports located at 1 Main St., in the parking lot for the former police station building near Lake Flower. The new ones will be installed at other public parking lots: Dorsey Street (6), lower Main Street (8), Berkeley Green (2), Mount Pisgah (6), Lake Colby (6) and the intersection of Broadway and Bloomingdale Avenue (2). The chargers are all level 2, which can deliver about 10 to 20 miles of range per hour. 

Glynn said the village hopes to install the chargers by next summer. She said this project will give Saranac Lake the most municipality-owned chargers in the park. 

“It’s a big deal, a big commitment towards having charging stations for the public,” said Nancy Bernstein, who assists communities with clean energy projects as an energy circuit rider with the Adirondack North Country Association.

The funded projects advance the state’s “efforts to advance clean transportation, expand publicly available electric vehicle chargers, and help reduce pollution including greenhouse gas emissions for a cleaner and greener environment,” according to the state’s press release.

It also said the program “prioritizes clean transportation investments in communities most affected by pollution and climate change.” 

Below is a list of other North Country recipients announced this week. 

North Country

• Town of Colton – $76,318 for four Level 2 charging ports 
• Village of Constableville – $21,222 for two Level 2 charging ports
• Town of Diana – $159,150 for one DCFC pedestal – 
• County of Essex – $55,008 for four Level 2 charging ports 
• Town of Jay – $206,403 for two Level 2 charging ports and one DCFC pedestal
• County of Lewis – $298,728 for two DCFC pedestals
• Village of Lowville – $93,312 for 12 Level 2 charging ports
• Village of Saranac Lake – $482,164 for 30 Level 2 charging ports

Charging stations explained

The types of EV charging stations:

Level 1 Chargers: This is the equivalent of plugging into a regular outlet, like the kind you have in your home. It’s the slowest way to charge, and usually delivers two to five miles of range per hour.

Level 2 Chargers: This type of charging is a step up, and is the most common one found at public charging stations or at workplaces. It can deliver about 10 to 20 miles of range per hour.

Level 3 Chargers: This is the gold standard of charging. Also known as “DC Fast Chargers,” these chargers can deliver 60 to 80 miles of range in 20 minutes.