Photo by Erin Nelson Sweeney.
The splash pad at Melrose Park will soon be home to Chelsea’s first EV charging station.
Chelsea will soon be getting its first electric vehicle charging station. Mayor Tony Picklesimer said the station will be at Melrose Park, where there is a playground and the Splash Pad.
The city applied for a grant for the station through Innovate Alabama, a public-private partnership that has been tasked with promoting economic development with an emphasis on technology.
The city originally had planned on applying for eight stations, but due to demand of the Innovate Alabama grant program, they trimmed their request to two to four stations. Ultimately, they were granted $65,000, enough for a single station.
Picklesimer said the station will be able to charge two vehicles at a time and have Wi-Fi connectivity, so people will be able to connect their cars or laptops to the internet while they’re charging their car.
Picklesimer said the Splash Pad was a perfect place to put the charging station, since parents are usually waiting while their children play at the park.
“So that’s a place that a mom could pump up while the kids are on the playground and at the Splash Pad,” he said.
In other council news:
The City Council voted unanimously at the Aug. 6 meeting to accept a bid to expand the parking lot at the County Road 11 sports complex.
Picklesimer said when there are multiple activities at the complex, the parking is “grossly inadequate,” with people parking along the road after the capacity of 40 vehicles has been filled at the complex. He said the addition would double the number of parking spots to 80.
The city was able to leverage available land it had at the complex, saving the city money. Because of the topography of the land, he said, site preparation would be minimal. Overall, the project will cost $200,000, with an expected time of completion 60 days from when the work is approved by the council.
The council also voted to continue a moratorium on certain businesses being built in Chelsea. Picklesimer said the moratorium was focused on self-storage facilities.
“We feel like we have enough,” he said.
The moratorium will extend a further year and will need to be renewed next year to continue.
The council voted to donate $10,000 to 3R Rodeo for the Bikes 4 Kids rodeo, held annually in Chelsea.
Picklesimer said the rodeo fills in a slot for a fall event for the city. The rodeo, which has drawn thousands of attendees, donates proceeds to provide bicycles to children and will be held this year from Sept. 27-28.
