2023Completion Year
$20,000.00Project Cost
$20,000.00MCCAC Funding
Overview
As part of the MCCAC’s Electric Vehicle Charging Program (EVCP), Smoky Lake County installed electric vehicle (EV) charging stations at the following facility for public use. These are the first EV charging stations to be installed in the County.
- Two Siemens 11.5 kW level 2 stations with one plug each at Metis Crossing
The project was completed in April 2023 and funded through the MCCAC’s Electric Vehicle Charging Program with funding provided by the Government of Alberta and Natural Resources Canada.
Approach
It was challenging for EVs to travel on Highway 28 between Edmonton and Cold Lake and municipalities in the Smoky Lake region have been aware of a gap in access to EV chargers in northeast Alberta. In early 2022, the then Regional Economic and Community Development Officer (RCDO) coordinated with each of the participating municipalities to successfully secure each of the individual grants that have made this project possible.
Metis Crossing is built on original river lots established by the Metis settlers to this region in the late 1800s and is Alberta’s first Metis cultural interpretative centre. The hundreds of acres surrounding the Cultural Gathering Centre (opened in 2020) and “The Lodge” hotel (opened in 2022) engages and excites visitors, and the programming encourages the active participation of visitors in activities that promote an appreciation of Metis people, customs, and celebrations.
The EV charger project reinforces the community’s commitment to renewables and greenhouse gas reductions. This project is one of four applications from the region to address the lack of EV services in the Smoky Lake Region and northeast Alberta.
This project is making it easier for residents and visitors to travel this area in electric vehicles, for example, along the historic and scenic Victoria Trail which was the narrow and winding route of fur traders, explorers, and Red River carts, connecting Fort Edmonton and Fort Gary (Winnipeg). The County is extremely pleased that these EV chargers have been made possible in partnership with the Municipal Climate Change Action Centre (MCCAC).
Reeve Lorne Halisky, Division 4 Councillor, Smoky Lake County
