There are just shy of 50,000 electric vehicle (EV) charging stations across the United States, according to Department of Energy estimates. But with anywhere from 35 million to 44 million electric cars and trucks expected to be on the roads by 2030 (compared to around 3 million today), the U.S. will need 1.2 million public chargers and 28 million private chargers to keep pace with demand, according to a recent McKinsey & Company report.
The federal infrastructure bill includes $7.5 billion for EV charging infrastructure, and President Biden has committed to adding 500,000 public chargers by 2030. There is also a slew of companies—including Tesla, ChargePoint, Electify America (which is partly owned by Volkswagon and Siemens), EVgo, and Volta—that’s building networks of Level 3 fast-charging EV charging stations, to say nothing of the partnership between General Motors and Bechtel to build thousands of fast charging stations.
Amid this jockeying for position, the startup LL Development plans to begin construction this fall on The StackCharge, an EV charging station that aspires to enhance the user experience with a quick-service restaurant, 24/7 restrooms, WiFi, and an outdoor lounge area. LL Development is led by entrepreneur Lawrence Fung and real estate investor Lester Ciudad Real, who spoke with BD+C about their concept and plans.
BIDING TIME WHILE RECHARGING
Fung and Real, both military vets, met as students enrolled in the Masters of Business program at the University of Southern California. They stayed friends but took circuitous career routes before forging their development company. According to LinkedIn.com, Fung also earned a degree in dentistry, and was a consultant for a clinical 3D printing app provider. Real spent two years with Goldman Sachs before shifting into real estate management and development.
Fung said the notion for The StackCharge can be traced to his own experiences using existing stations to recharge the Tesla he purchased 18 months ago. He observed that EV chargers, in the main, seemed to be set up to serve the shopping malls whose parking lots they were located in, rather than motorists waiting for their cars to recharge.
How to fill that time was the question. “Maybe the answer,” he recalled speculating, “was quick service food and other amenities” that might elevate the charging experience.
At the time, there were some concepts for EV charging stations floating around, including one conjured by Gensler and BMW Designworks that suggested ways to convert conventional gas stations to EV charging meccas. But Fung said he wasn’t convinced that most gas station operators were ready yet to change their business model, at least not until there was a lot more electric vehicles in use.
A CROWDED FIELD
The first StackCharge station, with 40 universal fast-charging ports, will be located on 1.29 acres in Baker, Calif., a pit stop between Las Vegas and Los Angeles. The nearly 2,500-sf retail pad on site—that once was a Starbucks—has a vacant existing drive-thru building that will be renovated and leased to a quick-service retail tenant. (LL Development has been working with the Los Angeles-based designer Side Studio.) The chargers will be able to recharge vehicles within 30 minutes for up to 200 miles of driving distance.
Baker is already served by Tesla Supercharger, EVgo, and Electrify America, so StackCharge will be entering an already competitive market. Fung quipped that electric vehicles are “iPhones with wheels,” and that his company plans to deploy digital marketing that targets drivers directly.
The first StackCharge is scheduled to open sometime next Spring. It will be the first of 10 stations in southern California that Fung and Real plan to open by the end of 2023. (The general contractor had not been selected at presstime.) Real said that the location of each site is seminal to its success. “We are looking to acquire sites that have strong retail real estate fundamentals and benefit from high transit traffic as we anticipate demand to skyrocket as EVs continue to dominate the market.”
StackCharge is being funded by co-development partners and family-office advisory firms. Eventually, Fung and Real plan to expand the concept to northern California and to other states.
Related Stories
Education Facilities | Aug 4, 2024
A former supersonic wind tunnel becomes a new educational facility for transportation design
The Mullin Transportation Design Center at ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, Calif., provides access for full-scale vehicular models, replicating a professional design studio.
Adaptive Reuse | Jul 30, 2024
Empty mall to be converted to UCLA Research Park
UCLA recently acquired a former mall that it will convert into the UCLA Research Park that will house the California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy at UCLA and the UCLA Center for Quantum Science and Engineering, as well as programs across other disciplines. The 700,000-sf property, formerly the Westside Pavilion shopping mall, is two miles from the university’s main Westwood campus. Google, which previously leased part of the property, helped enable and support UCLA’s acquisition.
Great Solutions | Jul 23, 2024
41 Great Solutions for architects, engineers, and contractors
AI ChatBots, ambient computing, floating MRIs, low-carbon cement, sunshine on demand, next-generation top-down construction. These and 35 other innovations make up our 2024 Great Solutions Report, which highlights fresh ideas and innovations from leading architecture, engineering, and construction firms.
Adaptive Reuse | Jul 12, 2024
Detroit’s Michigan Central Station, centerpiece of innovation hub, opens
The recently opened Michigan Central Station in Detroit is the centerpiece of a 30-acre technology and cultural hub that will include development of urban transportation solutions. The six-year adaptive reuse project of the 640,000 sf historic station, created by the same architect as New York’s Grand Central Station, is the latest sign of a reinvigorating Detroit.
MFPRO+ News | Jun 24, 2024
‘Yes in God’s Backyard’ movement could create more affordable housing
The so-called “Yes in God’s Backyard” (YIGBY) movement, where houses of worship convert their properties to housing, could help alleviate the serious housing crisis affecting many communities around the country.
Multifamily Housing | Jun 14, 2024
AEC inspections are the key to financially viable office to residential adaptive reuse projects
About a year ago our industry was abuzz with an idea that seemed like a one-shot miracle cure for both the shockingly high rate of office vacancies and the worsening housing shortage. The seemingly simple idea of converting empty office buildings to multifamily residential seemed like an easy and elegant solution. However, in the intervening months we’ve seen only a handful of these conversions, despite near universal enthusiasm for the concept.
Adaptive Reuse | Jun 13, 2024
4 ways to transform old buildings into modern assets
As cities grow, their office inventories remain largely stagnant. Yet despite changes to the market—including the impact of hybrid work—opportunities still exist. Enter: “Midlife Metamorphosis.”
Adaptive Reuse | Jun 6, 2024
Latest phase of London redevelopment completes two new buildings
Developers are creating a neighborhood for 25,000 residents and workers.
MFPRO+ News | Jun 3, 2024
New York’s office to residential conversion program draws interest from 64 owners
New York City’s Office Conversion Accelerator Program has been contacted by the owners of 64 commercial buildings interested in converting their properties to residential use.
Adaptive Reuse | May 15, 2024
Modular adaptive reuse of parking structure grants future flexibility
The shift away from excessive parking requirements aligns with a broader movement, encouraging development of more sustainable and affordable housing.
