Citrus County, Florida, home of the Crystal River where you can swim with Manatees, is also home to a chamber embracing innovation. The Citrus County Chamber of Commerce, in partnership with Duke Energy, has installed four electric vehicle (EV) chargers in their parking lot for public use. Duke Energy approached the chamber with an invitation to participate in their Park and Plug Program in order to help the utility “connect the dots” between Tampa and Tallahassee to make it easier for EV owners to travel between the two cities to ease range anxiety.
Range anxiety, the fear a vehicle has insufficient range to reach its destination, is one of the top barriers when a consumer considers an EV purchase and therefore becomes a significant factor in location siting when utilities, municipalities, or private companies look to deploy more EV charging infrastructure. The chamber installed four chargers (two DC fast chargers and two Level 2 chargers) and was more than happy to help advance electrification of the transportation sector but it also saw an opportunity for their local community.
“It really was a no brainer to get involved,” said Ardath Prendergast, Vice President of Operations and Business Retention & Expansion, Citrus County Chamber of Commerce. “The process was very easy and we were excited about the potential foot traffic that the chargers would bring to local businesses.”
In addition to an expected increase in foot traffic for the chamber and community, a few chamber members are now looking into chargers for their own locations.
To learn more about getting a charger at your chamber contact Daren Cheatham at Daren@chambersforinnovation.com
