by Stephanie Lulay slulay@stmedianetwork.com September 28, 2011 5:30PM
Representatives from Simon Property Group, 350Green and the media watch a demonstration of a Chevy Volt getting recharged during an unveiling of a Level 2 electric vehicle charging station at Chicago Premium Outlets in Aurora on Wednesday, Sep. 28, 2011. | Steven Buyansky~Sun-Times Media
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Updated: October 14, 2011 11:12AM
AURORA — City leaders were the first to see two electric car charging stations, installed at the Chicago Premium Outlets mall, in action Wednesday morning.
And besides being prime parking spots at the mall off Farnsworth Avenue, the new “level 2” charging stations will allow electric car users to power up while getting some shopping done.
As of Wednesday, the stations were operable, and representatives from Chevrolet and Nissan were testing their electric cars, the Volt and the Leaf, respectively.
The two charging stations are the second such installation in Aurora. according to city spokesman Kevin Stahr, a free electric car charging station was installed at the Aurora Transportation Center in 2006.
Simon Property Group, the mall’s owner, is among the first retail properties in the nation to offer electric vehicle charging stations. in addition to the Aurora mall, Simon is also installing charging stations at eight other locations in the Chicago suburbs.
The stations are self-service and easy to operate, according to Simon Property Group spokesman Les Morris. Charging will be free for an introductory time period, and then a nominal fee will be assessed, he said.
The company’s goal is to quell “range anxiety” that electric car owners may feel about traveling to the outlet mall to shop.
“They can come on a half-charge and go home knowing that they have enough of a charge to make it home,” said George Caraghiaur, Simon Property Group’s senior vice president of energy and procurement. “Catering to shoppers is what we do.”
The Aurora charging stations are two of 12 completed at Simon properties, and another 47 are in the works.
Although retail representatives admit they may be ahead of the curve, Morris said automakers estimate that a million electric vehicles will be on the roads by 2015 and a possibly 27 million by 2020.
“We believe that a well-developed charging infrastructure is going to be key to the success of (electric vehicles),” Caraghiaur said.
A typical charging station costs between $5,000 and $15,000, and the Simon stations were subsidized by a U.S. Department of Energy grant.
“They are fairly expensive, but we think it’s worth it,” Caraghiaur said.
“It’s our way to give an incentive to the early adopters (of electric cars).”
Los Angeles-based company 350Green, which builds and operates the stations, has more than 1,100 stations under contract. They have installed about 100.
“It’s coming — the demand is there,” said David Goodridge, vice president of sales for 350Green. “Our role is to act as a corridor for the technology.”
The Chevy Volt takes 3½ to 4 hours to charge in the “Level 2” charging station and runs between 25-50 miles on an electric charge alone. the hybrid car has a gasoline engine that can take over if the electric charge runs out.
The Nissan Leaf is a 100 percent electric car.
“The Leaf is just starting to be available in Illinois,” Mary Gilles of Nissan said. “We’ve sold 6,000 in seven states since last year.”
Aurora Mayor Tom Weisner said car manufacturers can develop all of the electric cars they want, but the infrastructure must be in place for them to operate.
“The ability to install the infrastructure is critical to their success,” Weisner said.