In what seems to be a growing trend in senior living and care communities, continuing care retirement / life plan community Cypress Cove in Fort Myers, FL, has installed electric vehicle charging stations for residents, guests and employees.
“We believe the newly installed charging stations will benefit Cypress Cove in our marketing efforts and reputation,” Public Relations Manager Jennfer Benton, APR, CPRC, told the McKnight’s Business Daily. “It is in line with the concierge services we provide our residents. With more residents, guests and team members opting for this technology, we want them to have the convenience of charging right here on campus.”
Each pedestal charger at the two charging stations can charge two vehicles at a time. The EV Level 2 charging stations can fully charge most electric vehicles in a couple of hours, according to a press release. They are compatible with all major electric vehicle brands, such as Tesla, Chevrolet, Nissan and Ford.
The charging stations won’t bring any revenue to Cypress Cove, Benton noted.
“The installation of the charging stations is a step forward in building a larger [environmental, social and corporate governance] footprint within the Cypress organization,” she said.
She noted that the community’s company fleet is not electric at this time.
If operators don’t already have electric vehicle charging stations on their property, they’re thinking about adding them, according to the results of a Ziegler CFO Hotline survey published in March.
In the survey of almost 180 senior living operators, 40% indicated that their campuses have charging stations, with another 15% saying they are in the process of installing them. Multi-site operators that have the stations have installed them at an average of 59% of their campuses, according to survey results.
All of the survey respondents that have charging stations said they make them available to residents, but only 55% make them available to staff members, and 49% offer them to guests. Approximately 55% of communities with charging stations don’t charge money for their use, and 45% impose some type of fee.
As of the March survey, only 15% of respondents indicated that their communities have electric vehicles in their own fleets.
Tamalpais Marin in Greenbrae, CA, a Sequoia Living CCRC, last year added its first electric vehicle to its fleet. At the request of a resident committee, Tamalpais Marin launched an initiative to bring four charging stations to the property in an effort to make its community as energy-neutral as possible.
More recently, in April, Collington, a CCRC in Mitchellville, MD, installed three charging stations as part of a three-year sustainability plan for the campus.
“The installation of these EV chargers will support the residents who have invested in electric cars while providing convenience for those looking to live environmentally conscious lives on campus,” Mike Burke, chair of Collington’s Climate Action Committee, said at the time. “These charging stations will provide our community a safe way to help build a sustainable future.”
