Bellingham Select Board Approves EV Charging Station Grant Application Unanimously

BELLINGHAM — October 7, 2024 — Bellingham Select Board unanimously approved a grant application for Level 3 electric vehicle charging stations at up to three town-owned locations, a move that could generate up to $20,000 annually per station at no upfront cost to taxpayers. Nick Revell, a representative of a company specializing in municipal EV infrastructure, told the board that a Massachusetts state incentive covers the bulk of installation costs and his firm would donate the remainder, with the town owning and operating the stations and keeping all revenue above a five-cent-per-kilowatt-hour processing fee. Proposed sites include the DPW facility on Depot Street, the Town Common, and a parcel at the corner of Hartford Avenue and Route 126, though board members debated whether the Depot Street location would draw sufficient traffic. Separately, the board expressed unanimous interest in revisiting the town's policy barring for-profit organizations from using the High Street Field Complex after resident Frank Gallo described being denied a field permit for an 11-and-12-year-old club softball team, directing the town administrator to research fee structures used by neighboring communities before any formal policy change.