Home is the most convenient place to charge an electric vehicle, but people who live in apartments and condos often need help from their property managers and HOAs to make charging happen. Because EV charging is a relatively new category, property managers may also need help understanding the best way to bring charging to their communities.
Alliance Residential Company, the second-largest apartment developer and seventh-largest apartment management company in the U.S., decided to adopt EV charging to meet its ambitious sustainability goals, and ChargePoint was instrumental in helping Alliance implement charging in an affordable, scalable and convenient way. We recently chatted with Kelly Vickers, LEED Green Associate, GGP and Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility at Alliance, about how ChargePoint helped bring EV charging to multiple Alliance properties.
What made you look into EV charging?
It all started with a commitment to going green. Alliance launched a company-wide sustainability program called Focus Green in 2012 as a way to demonstrate our commitment to reducing energy use and making more sustainable choices. We saw making EV charging available at our properties as an important way to showcase that commitment. Strong interest from residents further encouraged us to take steps toward making EV charging a reality at our properties.
How does ChargePoint help you with charging?
ChargePoint has been indispensable to us on several fronts: industry expertise, station funding and installation and ongoing management. Having access to charging solutions that were designed especially for shared or dedicated parking at apartments and condos helped us succeed with EV charging, as did being able to contact ChargePoint experts for guidance at any time. Being able to set different prices and policies for charging in different locations was also key for us, because residents in different areas have different needs and energy costs vary from place to place as well. Interacting with ChargePoint is easy for both residents and property managers thanks to the ChargePoint app for drivers and online dashboard for station managers. We also get to see how many greenhouse gas emissions we’re avoiding in the dashboard.
“Our property managers have enough to focus on — leasing our apartments — so [charging] is one thing we can take off their plate.”
– Kelly Vickers, Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility at Alliance Residential
What’s next for Alliance?
We are proud to have already installed 238 EV charging spots for residents across 59 of our multi-family communities. As more and more of our residents start to drive electric, we’ll continue to build and manage industry-leading properties and making sure all of our residents have access to the amenities they need, including EV charging. We’ll also continue to make progress toward reaching the goals we set as part of our overall commitment to sustainability.
Thanks to Alliance for being a great customer with an inspiring story. To be like Alliance and add EV charging at your apartment community, read our guide to EV Charging: What Apartment Owners Need to Know. Or, get the full customer story on Alliance.
