Durango City Council gave first approval Tuesday for a contract with Tesla, the electric vehicle manufacturer that leads the way in global EV sales, to build and maintain eight superchargers at the Transit Center.
The contract will help put Durango on the map for electric vehicle owners nationwide. Those who travel through Southwest Colorado are currently able to fast-charge their vehicles in Farmington or Telluride.
Durango Transportation Director Sarah Hill said federally designated “priority corridors” for supercharging stations include U.S. Highways 550 and 160, and Durango sits at the intersection of those major highways.
There are currently two ChargePoint stations at the Transit Center, but the level of service Tesla provides is considerably higher.
If City Council gives final approval of the contract, which is scheduled to be voted on at the Jan. 2 regular meeting, Tesla charging stations would be built and opened by fall 2024.
Hill said the contract supports state and city goals to get more electric vehicles on the road as society shifts more toward green energy solutions in the face of climate change.
In addition to the city’s EV readiness plan adopted by City Council in 2021, which aims to increase the number of charging stations in town, city staff members have heard frequent requests to add more chargers, she said.
In August, the U.S. Colorado Department of Transportation awarded Tesla a National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Formula Program grant to establish more supercharging stations in Southwest Colorado. The grant will contribute to the installation and maintenance of chargers at the Transit Center.
Hill said basic terms of the contract are:
- The city will license Tesla to install and operate in the Transit Center parking lot.
- Tesla will install and operate eight supercharging stations in addition to a solar canopy.
- The license agreement is a 10-year term, in line with other lease agreements with the city.
- The city will not pay any upfront or maintenance costs through the agreement.
Per the agreement, the city and Tesla can collaborate to allow non-electric vehicles to park at some charging stations until higher levels of use are reached.
“Their supercharging is best in class with 24/7 network support,” Hill said. “Tesla vehicles account for almost half of EVs in La Plata County and around 60% nationwide.”
She said Tesla uses 250 kilowatt EV plugs that are compatible with most EVs on the market and provide more power output than current chargers at the Transit Center can muster.
Two Durango residents attended a public hearing about the contract on Tuesday to voice their support for Tesla superchargers.
Thirty-year resident Lori Bryan spoke in favor of the agreement with Tesla and read several points from an email from her friend, Chris Gunter, who also supports the move.
She said Tesla is soliciting votes online to determine where peak interest for superchargers is. As of Friday, Durango ranked No. 22 globally in demand for superchargers with 1,472 votes for the city.
“This is far more than any other location in this region,” she said.
She added that ChargePoint currently has a monopoly on high-speed EV charging in La Plata County.
She said nearly all EV producers have adopted Tesla’s charging standard and North American Charging Standards, and Tesla is installing adapters to existing charging stations for functionality with non-Tesla EV models.
She said Tesla is launching a model late next year that will priced under $25,000, and “nearly all Teslas sold in North America are built here in the United States.”
Resident Steve Parker said he will celebrate three years of owning a Tesla Y model in March. It’s served him well on his trips across Colorado, except for the fact superchargers are absent between Durango and Walsenburg.
“We miss out on people driving west to east. They’re directed to Farmington or over to Telluride,” he said. “People in Northern Colorado have to drive here on their way to some place down south. They’re steered to go through Telluride.”
He said the proposed Tesla contract is “an excellent plan” that will change the greater landscape of supercharger locations for the better.
“I think it’s great to have the electric charging stations,” Councilor Olivier Bosmans said. “To have electric vehicles being able to park at the Transit Center and walk down and have dinner, tourists or locals, it doesn’t matter, (it’s) a great opportunity.”
Mayor Melissa Youssef said superchargers are needed in Durango and the region.
“It’ll put us on the map and it’ll be a great draw for our community, so I’m excited to see this happen,” she said.
cburney@durangoherald.com
