Location selection is a large part of the project process – charging stations are not to be installed just anywhere. During municipal consultations regarding the available properties, Lakeland stressed that primary consideration is given to sites that are in locations without other charging infrastructure, where residents and visitors want to stop and shop, eat or be active. Municipalities with electric fleet vehicles gave consideration to how public chargers could work within their plans.

Most importantly, the site must be well-lit and safe, to ensure the EV Charging experience is a positive one for everyone.

This project is building out for the future! Locations need to have the ability for growth, if the need arises for additional charging stations. The project team reviewed potential infrastructure upgrades to allow for expansion at a later date. This is critical to the location owners to avoid bottlenecks, and to the local utility to ensure adequate capacity on the network.

As the EV Charging network grows and EV adoption increases, additional locations will be added. As always, this will be done in consultation with the municipalities, and will provide the best possible solution for our communities.

The EV conversation has come very quickly to some of our smaller municipalities relying on tourism and seasonal populations. Lakeland Holding is a trusted partner throughout the region and many of our municipalities come to us for support, advice and solutions. The project design team was able to help educate decision makers with an EV 101 presentation, including the requirements to install different types of chargers. By providing a complete solution, unifying the region yet addressing each community individually, the idea of EV charging is less daunting for each municipality, and the project received incredible support.

Community by-laws are in place to ensure that the marked parking spots are utilized only for EV charging and active charging only in identified locations.

Level1 chargers can be found mostly in residences, and this project will focus on Level2 and Level3 public chargers. Level2 chargers are for longer durations, perhaps lunch and an afternoon shopping. Level3 chargers are for those on the go, providing a quick charge.

The selection of hardware and software for this project was done based on suitability, availability and growth opportunities. The selected hardware will enable both level 2 and level 3 charging stations to work together. Level 2 and Level 3 DC Fast Chargers come in various sizes and configurations, resulting in many different charging speeds. The connection types can also vary, and the project intends to use the most widely available technology while staying at the leading edge to guarantee availability to the widest range of users.

The desire is to have a network that is easily accessible to local community, shoulder season residents and visitors. The flexibility of downloading one app and utilizing this single app while living / visiting Muskoka and Parry Sound was a huge topic of conversation in an extremely positive way.

This feedback confirmed our vision of working with one partner to deliver on the hardware procurement and tracking, and one software management system. This will streamline and simplify the process for not only drivers, but for the management of the chargers and the maintenance of the system.