Councillors push for EV chargers in new London apartment buildings

A London city council committee vote calls for new rules that would require developers to add wiring for electric vehicle chargers and racks for short-term bike parking in all new apartment buildings with more than 40 units. 

A motion passed at London city council's planning committee on Tuesday calls on city staff to develop new green development standards to be applied on the buildings at the site plan stage. 

The motion, which passed by a unanimous vote, also establishes a bird-friendly building standard for municipal construction. Developers would also be required to landscape using native species for half the plantings.

The vote doesn't create binding rules immediately, but calls on staff to look at drafting them later this year while paying attention to expected changes coming this year to the Ontario building code, which might make some of the changes mandatory province-wide.

Coun. Skylar Franke, who sponsored the motion along with Deputy Mayor Shawn Lewis, said applying the green standards to new buildings is crucial even if it takes a while before they're entrenched in bylaws or tougher building code rules. She said it fits with the city's climate emergency declaration and it's cheaper to make the changes to new buildings instead of expensive retrofits. 

"It's incredibly important that we do it as soon as possible," she said. "If we don't do it, we're probably going to have to retrofit every building in London if we're going to meet our net-zero targets." 

The motion passed Tuesday will require five per cent of all parking spaces in new apartment buildings to have the rough wiring in place for electric vehicle chargers. 

Franke, who drives an  electric vehicle herself and installed a charger in her own home, said it allows vehicles to be charged at night so drivers don't waste their day waiting at charging stations. 

The federal government has set a target for all new vehicles sold in Canada to be zero-emission by 2035. However, the lack of charging infrastructure, along with the high cost of electric vehicles, have been flagged as significant impediments to EV adoption.

Chargers at homes are crucial, advocate says

Londoner Don Millar is an electric vehicle advocate and the past president of the London EV Association. He's also owned four electric vehicles.

An early adopter of EVs, he struggled when the landlord of an apartment building where he lived failed to deliver on a promise to install a vehicle charger for tenants.

"I had to drive five kilometres to the closest quick charger so [that cost] an hour, two or three times a week," he said. 

Millar said removing logistical challenges for EV owners is key to their adoption.

"Developers don't care about installing vehicle chargers and we need some sort of impetus for them to do it," he said. 

And while Millar said the spirit of the council motion is well-intentioned, he said five per cent of parking spaces is "woefully inadequate, but it's still a great start. " 

Local developers aren't opposed

Mike Wallace of the London Development Institute, a group that represents most local developers, spoke at Tuesday's meeting. He said developers aren't opposed to the proposed to new green standards but said any changes have to come with input from the industry.

"Regardless of what council says, the market is going to drive it," he said. "When people are buying EVs they're going to demand their homes have EV stations. That's not an issue for us, we need to be at the table." 

The motion passed at the environment committee meeting goes to London city council on Jan. 23 for ratification.