Laguna council advances ordinance to streamline approval of electric vehicle charging stations

Installing electric vehicle charging stations may soon be easier in Laguna Beach following a City Council vote Tuesday night on an ordinance to do so.

At a meeting held in a deserted City Hall and physically attended by only one member amid measures to fight the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus, the City Council voted unanimously to pass to a second reading an ordinance that would amend city code to allow applications for electric vehicle charging stations to be expedited for permits if they meet certain requirements.

The ordinance would allow city staff to establish a checklist for expedited plan review; offer plan review and permit issuance within three business days if an application meets the checklist standards and general plan requirements; post forms and requirements online, including the checklist; and train inspectors and permitting staff for inspections and review of electric vehicle charging stations.

The action will bring the city into compliance with state law.

Assembly Bill 1236 was signed into law in October 2015 by then-Gov. Jerry Brown with the goal of facilitating development of high-speed charging stations as part of state efforts to encourage the use of zero-emissions vehicles.

It required jurisdictions that issue electric vehicle charging permits to adopt an ordinance by September 2017 to expedite the process.

An Orange County grand jury report released this month said Laguna Beach was not in compliance and called on it and seven other cities in the county to update their municipal codes to create a more streamlined process for residences and businesses and dedicate a portion of their websites to describe the process and provide checklists and forms by May 1.

Laguna Beach currently has four public electric vehicle charging stations — two in Lot 11 on Forest Avenue and two in Lot 6, also known as the Glenneyre parking structure.

It costs $2 per hour to charge a vehicle for up to four hours.

Councilman Peter Blake, the only council member who attended the meeting in person rather than by teleconference, asked where the city stands on Tesla “superchargers” and whether the company subsidizes their installation.

Several are located throughout Orange County in cities such as Fountain Valley, Anaheim and Buena Park. Installation is scheduled for other county cities, but the list does not include Laguna Beach, and Assistant City Manager Shohreh Dupuis said Tesla currently isn’t interested in adding any in the city.

Dupuis said Laguna is adding four charging stations in the Lumberyard parking lot by City Hall as part of the Village Entrance project but is discussing with contractors what the cost would be to swap regular electric vehicle charging stations for high-speed chargers.

Staff will return to the City Council with that cost once it’s determined.

Original Level 1, 120-volt units recharge a vehicle battery at a rate of about four miles of driving range per hour of recharge, the grand jury report said. Level 2, 240-volt residential chargers are nearly six times faster, the report said.

The city now accepts electric vehicle charging applications at the Community Development Department. They are reviewed within 10 business days, and inspections are performed within 24 hours of the request, city staff said.

The council’s second reading of the ordinance for final approval is tentatively scheduled for March 31 but may change because of coronavirus concerns.

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