Fast-charging EV stations coming to Oxford through grant funding

Oxford is preparing to put a substantial grant to use installing chargers for electric vehicles, but members of City Council disagree on where to put them.

Late last year, the city obtained a federal grant totaling over $900,000 to install fast-charging EV stations known as direct current fast charging (DCFC) stations. While common 120-volt outlets take 40 to 50 hours to charge battery EVs and Level 2 chargers can take four to 10 hours, DCFC stations can charge similar vehicles in under an hour.

Under the terms of the grant agreement, Oxford will install three DCFC stations, each with two charging ports. The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) will pay the local match of 20% for the project rather than the city. Two stations are set to be installed at the Uptown surface lot (Lot 52) at the Main Street-Church Street intersection, and the third will go near the Oxford Municipal Building.

Council approved a resolution to move forward with the project at an April 1 meeting, but council member David Prytherch raised concerns about the station locations.

While Prytherch, who drives an EV, supports the chargers and voted in favor of the resolution, he would prefer to see Lot 52 preserved for future redevelopment. If the city puts charging stations there, he said, they may have to move them later if the city decides to lease or sell the property for new construction.

“It’s been my hope that we can find a site that we wouldn’t have to move should we decide to redevelop Lot 52,” Prytherch said. “All the documents keep saying the surface lot, but … even if we don’t develop it, the farmers market basically occupies that space for all Saturday mornings for half the day. I think we want the charger in a spot that’s free and available.”

The Oxford Farmers Market sets up in Lot 52 every Saturday of the year. Prytherch suggested alternative locations on Park Place East or West around the Uptown parks. Service Director Mike Dreisbach said staff considered alternative locations including along streets but ultimately opted to recommend Lot 52 for safety reasons.

Mayor Bill Snavely, who also drives an EV, disagreed with Prytherch’s hope to preserve Lot 52 for potential future development.

“It’s being used now as a farmers market,” Snavely said. “It’s surface parking that is used for every event that comes along, and I don’t foresee it being developed anytime soon, certainly with the finances that are available to us as a city.”

Snavely said the conversation about charger locations was separate from approval of the resolution before council on April 1 and suggested that Prytherch air his concerns at another time. However, the resolution text does state that the agreement with ODOT is for charging stations “at the uptown surface lot and the Oxford Municipal Building.”

Other business

Also during the April 1 meeting, council approved a contract of nearly $660,000, plus a $42,000 contingency, for the city’s 2025 street resurfacing program. The city had previously budgeted $700,000 for the project. This year’s resurfacing will cover portions of Elm, Devonshire, Timothy, Patrick, Fieldcrest, Ridge Ave, Vereker, Ryan, Josie, Dana, Daniel, David, and Glenview.

Council approved an additional $367,000 contract to update the wastewater treatment plant’s computer automation system. The current system was installed in the 1990s and has outlived its lifespan, Dreisbach said. Including a contingency, the total cost is set at $403,000, below the city’s budgeted amount of $411,000.

Last December, council members voted to terminate a lease agreement with a developer for an affordable housing project on Hester Road, citing untenable proposed rent prices. The city put out a new request for affordable housing proposals for the property and received four responses. At the April 1 council meeting, members voted unanimously to rezone the property to allow for a higher-density development.