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Photo by John Eaton
Pictured is one of the two electrical vehicle-charging stations installed on Central Avenue in Wellsboro. Both are located behind existing parking meters.

In October of 2022, the Wellsboro Area Chamber of Commerce applied for a grant through the Department of Environmental Protection’s Driving PA Forward rebate program. The grant was for two Level 2 EV stations, each capable of charging two vehicles at the same time.

On Nov. 7, 2022, Julie Henry, Wellsboro Area Chamber of Commerce executive director, received an email stating her Level 2 EV Charging Rebate Application had been approved and that she had until May 6, 2023 to complete the process.

Per the parameters, Tioga County was one of only a few counties in the northern half of the state that qualified for the grant. One of those parameters required that the electrical vehicle charging stations be placed in an accessible public space.

After discussion with the Wellsboro Area Chamber of Commerce’s Enhancement Committee and Wellsboro Borough and Tioga County officials, the proposed four parking spaces were announced at multiple public chamber meetings and in the Chamber of Commerce’s newsletter.

Installed last week (April 10-14) were the two electrical vehicle charging stations that can serve up to four cars at one time in four parking spaces along Central Avenue in Wellsboro.

“We chose the Central Avenue location because of its proximity to downtown Wellsboro and because those four parking spaces see significantly less use than others in the downtown area,” said Henry.

“Making these spaces more desirable is that the section of Central Avenue where the electrical vehicle charging stations are is not closed to traffic for Laurel Festival, STPR, Dickens of a Christmas or for any other event,” Henry said.

“It takes several hours to fully charge a vehicle at a Level 2 EV station and the Central Avenue location will allow people to visit shops and restaurants while waiting,” said Henry.

“The location is also visible to travelers and easy to access. Only one of the four parking spaces will be restricted EV parking only, leaving the other three spaces open for use by any vehicle,” Henry said.

“Vehicle owners are charged by the hour to use the stations through an app on their mobile phone. The driver is also required to use the parking meters to pay for parking and must follow all current parking restrictions,” said Henry.

“The Wellsboro Chamber installed and is responsible for the electricity on The Green. All charging fees for the Level 2 EV stations will flow through the Chamber of Commerce with proceeds, if any, to be used for future enhancement projects in Wellsboro,” Henry said.

“The Chamber of Commerce does not expect to profit from the stations. Our hope is to provide a service to the community and its visitors while enhancing commerce in the Wellsboro area,” said Henry.

“While we don’t see many electric car owners in Wellsboro, we have had people who traveled to Wellsboro in electric-powered vehicles complain to the chamber about the difficulty they had in finding a charging station here. Having access to electrical vehicle charging stations is important to travelers and tourists,” Henry said.

For additional information, please contact Wellsboro Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Julie Henry at (570) 724-1926.

Diane Eaton
dianetn@ptd.net
(570) 724-3800