In celebration of Hudson Valley Climate Solutions Week (September 13 - 29), Ulster County Executive Jen Metzger today unveiled the County's EV ARC™ vehicle charging station, an innovative charging facility that is entirely off the grid, powered by solar and equipped with battery storage, that can be used in remote areas with limited grid access as well as during power outages, helping bolster resilience to the impacts of climate change.
The electric vehicle (EV) charging facility, which is portable, is currently stationed at the County's Office Complex on Ulster Avenue in Kingston, which houses a number of County Departments, including Social Services, Veterans Services, and Office of the Aging, as well as Family Court. Later this year, the charging station will be relocated to its new home in the Ashokan Trail parking lot off Route 28 in Boiceville.
Other speakers joining the County Executive at the event were Legislator Chris Hewitt, Chair of the Energy, Environment & Sustainability Committee; Tim Guinee, president of Climate Action Now and Legislative Director of the NY Climate Reality Project Chapters Coalition; and Betta Broad, Campaign Director of New Yorkers for Clean Power, and Director of Advocacy at the Association for Energy Affordability.
Ulster County was among the first counties to install EV charging infrastructure, beginning in 2015, and currently has 22 Level-2 chargers (44 plugs in total) located at different County facilities for public and government use. In nine years, the County has hosted 32,032 public charging sessions (not counting County fleet vehicles), with 5,160 public charging sessions in 2023, alone.
At the unveiling, County Executive Metzger highlighted progress by the County in implementing the Executive Order on Climate that she issued in her first month in office last year, making Ulster County the first in the state to align its climate goals with the state's nation-leading Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act. The comprehensive Executive Order included provisions to expand EV infrastructure and strengthen the County’s Green Fleet Policy, making EVs the default purchase for passenger vehicles and setting a goal of an electrified transit fleet by 2035. EVs provide not only greenhouse gas emissions reduction but also save the County taxpayer dollar through a lower total cost of ownership.
The Ulster Avenue Office Complex currently has 12 Level-2 chargers and will be adding four high-speed DC chargers in 2025. The County is also expanding its bank of chargers at the Trudy Farber Building in Ellenville, creating a charging hub with two high-speed chargers and three Level-2 chargers for communities in the western end of the County.
The County is also supporting local government efforts to expand EV charging through an ARPA-funded Solar & Electric Vehicle Infrastructure grant program. Ten municipalities recently received awards for solar and EV projects, and the County Executive is planning a second round of grants for public EV charging in 2025.
“Ulster County is taking a solutions-oriented approach to addressing climate change, leading by example,” said Ulster County Executive Jen Metzger. “The County’s new ARC electric-vehicle charger combines solar power and battery storage, enabling zero-emissions charging without connecting to the grid. It is an ideal technology for remote locations, like trailheads, and also provides climate resiliency benefits, capable of charging not just cars but other devices as well. The unit is fully transportable on a flatbed truck, and could be dispatched if needed to provide power for vehicles and other uses anywhere in the County.”
“The Ulster County legislature is focused on securing green technologies that reduce our carbon footprint and encourage an economy that regenerates our earth,” said Legislator Chris Hewitt, Chair of the Energy, Environment & Sustainability Committee. “We are in the process of empowering all of our towns to invest in modern green energy, like the new innovative EV charging station at the DSS. Improvements like this move our county forward on its path to having the greenest fleet in the state.”
“Emissions from the transportation sector constitute a major source of New York's greenhouse gasses,” said Tim Guinee, Legislative Director, NY Climate Reality Project Chapters Coalition. “The new EV ARC demonstrates another bold move to address these challenges and secure for county residents a safe, healthy, sustainable future. Executive Metzger and the legislature deserve our thanks and admiration for their commitment to the public good and well-being.”
“Ulster County Executive Jen Metzger is leading by example, and showing that to implement NY’s Climate Act requiring that we decarbonize our entire state, and do it equitably by 2050, we need to get projects built locally, so more people can plug into the clean energy transition,” said Betta Broad, Campaign Director of New Yorkers for Clean Power, and Director of Advocacy at the Association for Energy Affordability. “There’s never been a better time to switch to an EV, and EV chargers are surprisingly affordable. New Yorkers for Clean Power has free clean energy coaches that you can make an appointment with online who will guide you through the process of buying an EV, installing a charger, or adopting other clean energy and energy efficient all-electric technologies for your home or community.”
