As decision makers and leaders, across a variety of industries including property development, interest in helping create that world of tomorrow, especially when it comes to sustainability, is growing and continues to grow. One avenue to explore, that’s increasingly accessible, is by helping to build EV infrastructure, allowing us to usher in a time when we rely more on advanced technology and less on fossil fuels.
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Contrary to popular opinion, sustainable communities aren’t only a vision for the future. To truly focus on sustainability initiatives, we must look beyond planning and developing new communities. In fact, one of the most exciting and important aspects of sustainable communities is the effort to retroactively convert existing towns, cities, and communities to include more sustainable features and infrastructure. But what does that mean? What does that look like?
Sustainable communities are designed to help mitigate the environmental and economic impact that communities can have on citizens as well as the environment. It means looking at everything from public infrastructure to public policy to improve equity and fairness across all aspects of life. And, as a more specific example, sustainable communities are actively working to minimize their reliance on fossil fuels, decrease greenhouse gas emissions, conserve water resources, and limit pollution.
Over the last decade, concerns about the pace of climate change have grown. The climate activists of the 70s and 80s are in leadership positions and Gen Z has pretty much always lived in a world threatened by climate change. As climate leaders, those two groups have led the charge on identifying the ways we can work to plan and create communities focused on sustainability. That means looking at everything from growing up rather than spreading out, providing greater public transportation and walkable cities, decreasing our reliance on single use products, including cars that carry a single passenger instead of several, and looking for ways to make improvements as we shift away from the old infrastructure.
Thankfully, many municipalities and businesses are also realizing that sustainable communities can mean huge cost savings. From decreased resource utilization to improved management and decreases in pollution. Further, with condensed communities, services and support can be centralized saving municipalities even more.
Similarly, businesses, especially those who provide service and delivery can decrease costs of delivering those services with a more centralized population.
However, many of these shifts will take time. We’re still reliant on cars. Our cities and highways are still designed to accommodate our love affair with the combustible engine. And, much of our infrastructure still caters to that reliance. To combat that, car manufacturers, with the urging and help of governments, are helping us make the shift by increasing investments in the technology that will help us bridge the gap.
One of the goals of sustainability is to help preserve wild and green spaces. They’re vital for our health. Parks improve the health of our cities and their residents.
In order to both preserve those spaces and accommodate residents, housing needs to reflect those goals and that often means building up rather than out. Multi-dwelling units (MDUs) are an essential part of our sustainability goals.
With residents concentrated in specific areas, businesses will also flock to those areas, increasing desirability. However, that also creates competition among property owners and developers, so finding ways to have your properties stand out becomes even more essential.
Private businesses often move faster than governments and that means our path to sustainable cities is, for now, largely being led by private developers and housing demands. Until those housing areas are served by robust public transportation opportunities or additional businesses move in to make areas walkable, MDUs must be looking at ways to create sustainable living situations for those who demand it, and the demand is going up. And, attracting and retaining high-value tenants is no longer optional, it is now a given for higher NOI (net operating income).
Many residents are requesting smart home devices to help them manage utility usage, looking for buildings made from sustainable materials, and hoping to find communities that include amenities that demonstrate forward thinking and a commitment to sustainability. One of those features is EV charging stations.
Simply put, EV charging stations provide an additional opportunity for residents to decrease their carbon footprint. These same residents are investing more in EVs and that growth rate is expected to increase and charging EVs where their owners live is a vital part of this development.
Additionally, EV charging stations send a very clear message about a building owner or developer’s commitment to helping grow a greener infrastructure. The added bonus is that this is just one of the benefits for MDU owners and developers.
MDUs are, and will be, a vital part of building sustainable communities. As a part of that effort, demonstrating commitment to sustainability will be a primary factor for many residents. EV charging stations are a pretty visible way to achieve that all while contributing to the sustainability efforts of the community and residents.
And apartment dweller demands will keep growing. In fact, tens of millions of apartment dwellers will need a place to plug in given that 80% of EV charging happens at home. Those are residents that your property could be attracting. Right now, many MDUs are offering bigger and better amenities to attract residents and, given the competition, EV charging stations can help you stand out.
Finally, with the right EV charging stations in place, you can also realize a new revenue stream. You provide the amenity to your residents, but then you, ultimately, have control over the cost and power distribution across your charging stations. It can also be included as an added incentive. Imagine being able to offer new residents a month of free or discounted charging as a lease signing incentive. With NovaCHARGE’s ChargeUP charging platform management system, as the EV charging station owner, you have unparalleled control over your charging stations and the users.
For example, you can offer one rate to residents and another to visitors. You can offer discounts over or on holidays. And, with NovaCHARGE’s NovaBOT and real time status updates, you can guarantee your residents reliability, improving their charging and residential experience.
There is no doubt that MDUs will be a vital part of a sustainable future and, hopefully, building robust EV infrastructure. If you’re ready to be a part of that vision and that future, schedule a call with the NovaCHARGE team and let’s change the world today, not tomorrow.