Wallingford approves plans for EV-only charging facility

An electrical vehicle-only charging facility is in the works in Wallingford after the town approved plans this week.

The facility sits along Route 68 and Miles Drive and is currently an open field. Next door is a childcare center and several hotels.

It would have 38 charging stations, 69 total parking spaces, a convenience center, an outdoor patio and a canopy to shade those who are in their vehicles charging.

“This is really … the gas station of the future,” said Tom Daly, an engineer for SLR Consulting. “This is where your EV vehicles will come and get charged.”

The plan was presented to the town’s planning and zoning commission and was passed unanimously.

“We believe that this location, adjacent to (Interstate) 91, is just a perfect fit,” Daly said.

The Verna family, under the LLC Gem Property Group, has owned the land for over a decade, but developing it has been challenging.

“It’s very forward-thinking, it protects the environment. That location had its challenges, while it’s near exit 15 off I-91, and would be optimal for some type of vehicle service area, because it’s in our protected watershed area, this is the kind of thing you can put there,” said Wallingford Mayor Vincent Cervoni. “You don’t have to put tanks in the ground, don’t have to worry about unnecessarily disturbing soils or exposing them to contamination.”

“You’ll be able to come in here, park your car, charge it, you can either wait in your car underneath the canopy, or come up into the retail space,” Daly added. “The retail building here is about 3,000 square feet … and then adjacent to that we have a small outdoor patio.”

“We anticipate there will be restrooms, coffee bar, tea bar, snacks … things that people need for convenience that they may need while charging their car,” said Liz Verna of GEM Property Group.

The property owners said it would be the first EV-only charging facility of its size in the state, and possibly the country.

“I would say in the future you’ll probably see a bunch this size, like gas stations are now,” said David Sullivan of SLR Consulting.

GEM Property Group still needs to find a tenant to run the EV chargers and convenience center, but hopes to break ground and open the facility in 2025.

“We have our own electric division, and this year is the 125^th of the electric division, so the coinciding of the two things is exciting,” Cervoni said. “It’s the kind of historical timing that you like to look back on and say, we were the first in this one regard 125 years ago, and now we’re going to be the first in another advancement in the use of electricity in the modern world.”