NYPA Press Release

Town of Keene Location Marks Second EVolve NY Site in Region, Offers Convenient EV Travel to Lake Placid and High Peaks Region

Latest New York Fast Charging Hub Helps Advance New York’s Clean Energy Goals for Transportation Sector

KEENE—Drivers of any make or model of electric vehicle (EV) can now quickly charge up at Stewart’s Shops in in the Town of Keene while traveling to Lake Placid or other tourist destinations in the Adirondack region. The New York Power Authority (NYPA) has teamed up with the convenience store chain to install four new EV high speed chargers in the Stewart’s parking lot at 10857 NY-73 or 9N, 14 miles east of Lake Placid, and 16 miles, or about a half-hour, from I-87 / the Adirondack Northway.

The latest site expands NYPA’s EVolve NY high-speed charging network and offers a fast, convenient EV charging stop for travelers in one of New York State’s most touristed locations and the largest single protected wilderness and wildlife region in the contiguous U.S. A similar charging hub was Installed last year in Schroon Lake, about 30 miles south from this location.

“New York State is full of beautiful natural sights that make for perfect road trips and NYPA’s EVolve NY network makes it easy to travel to destinations across our great state in an EV,” said NYPA Interim President and CEO Justin E. Driscoll. “Being able to fully recharge in less than 30 minutes inspires confidence in zero-emission transportation and encourages more New Yorkers to drive EV so that they can take an active part in both protecting and enjoying the environment. Strategically placed chargers, like these in the center of the Adirondacks, will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help the state achieve its bold clean energy goals.”

“Hikers and tourists will certainly benefit from the new EV chargers at our Keene shop. We are proud to offer our customers more convenience and more options for ‘filling’ up their tanks. Stewart’s Shops is known for a quick in and out and these fast chargers will provide the convenience our customers know and expect. As an energy provider for today and into the future, we have the ability to fuel any vehicle and grow our EV network at strategic locations,” said Stewart’s Shops President Gary Dake.

The Keene site has three 150kW Direct Current Fast Charger (DCFC) stations and one 350kW charger and can recharge most of the battery capacity in any make or model of electric vehicle in as little as 20 minutes. Two of the charging stations are equipped with both fast charging connectors, Combined Charging System (CCS) and CHAdeMO systems, so all electric vehicles, including Tesla cars with an adapter, can plug in.

“The Adirondack Park Agency is thrilled to see the New York Power Authority bring high speed EV chargers into the High Peaks region of the Adirondack Park,” said APA Executive Director Barb Rice.  “These NYPA fast charging stations will be critical assets for Park residents and visitors alike who drive electric vehicles.  We thank Governor Hochul, NYPA and Stewart’s Shops for teaming up to ensure the Adirondack Park is part of the EVolve NY network.”   

“The Town of Keene offers some of the most popular hiking trails in the High Peaks and is a convenient stop for outdoor enthusiasts and visitors who come to enjoy nature and sightseeing,” said Keene Supervisor Joe Pete Wilson. “These high-speed chargers will encourage EV drivers, who believe in reducing harmful exhaust emissions and protecting the environment, to tour this area and make their travel as easy as possible. Stewart's has been a strong supporter of our community and this is one more example of that overall commitment to Keene.”

The Lake Placid area also has more than a dozen public level 2 chargers, which are used for charging during a longer stop.

The Keene location is one of five Stewart’s Shops sites in the Capital and Adirondack regions that will host NYPA fast charging stations. Schodack and Moreau opened last summer. Latham and Clifton Park will be announced in the next few weeks.

“PlugIn Stations Online is proud to have facilitated the build of the latest DC fast site at the Stewart's Shop in Keene, N.Y.,” said John Doran, president of Plugin Stations Online, which installed the chargers. “Thank you to NYPA, Stewart's Shops, National Grid and LaCorte Companies for making this charging gateway to the Adirondacks a possibility.” 

Governor Kathy Hochul recently signed legislation setting a goal for all new passenger cars and trucks sold in New York to be zero-emissions by 2035. Supporting Charge NY, a New York State initiative to get more electric vehicles on the road, other EV charging and deployment initiatives and programs are designed to get 850,000 zero-emission vehicles on the road by 2025. This new installation also complements the Governor’s “Make Ready” program, which will use funding from investor-owned utilities to reach a goal of deploying more than 50,000 chargers by 2025. Such electrification efforts, in collaboration with NYSERDA and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and other state and industry partners, will help the state reach its aggressive clean energy goals as outlined in the Climate Act.

EVolve NY
The EVolve NY network has more than 75 public fast chargers operational across New York State with more coming online every month.

New York State hosts 868 public fast chargers at 203 locations, although they range in speed from 25kW to 350kW which equates to varying charging times. More than 500 are Tesla-only chargers.

For a map noting EVolve NY chargers, click here. EV owners can also locate public chargers using smartphone apps such as Shell Recharge, PlugShare, ChargeHub, ChargeWay, Electrify America, Google Maps, or the U.S. Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels Data Center.

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New York State's Nation-Leading Climate Plan
New York State's nation-leading climate agenda is the most aggressive climate and clean energy initiative in the nation, calling for an orderly and just transition to clean energy that creates jobs and continues fostering a green economy as New York State recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic. Enshrined into law through the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, New York is on a path to achieve its mandated goal of a zero-emission electricity sector by 2040, including 70 percent renewable energy generation by 2030, and to reach economy wide carbon neutrality. It builds on New York's unprecedented investments to ramp-up clean energy including over $33 billion in 102 large-scale renewable and transmission projects across the state, $6.8 billion to reduce buildings emissions, $1.8 billion to scale up solar, more than $1 billion for clean transportation initiatives, and over $1.6 billion in NY Green Bank commitments. Combined, these investments are supporting nearly 158,000 jobs in New York's clean energy sector in 2020, a 2,100 percent growth in the distributed solar sector since 2011 and a commitment to develop 9,000 megawatts of offshore wind by 2035. Under the Climate Act, New York will build on this progress and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 85 percent from 1990 levels by 2050, while ensuring that at least 35 percent with a goal of 40 percent of the benefits of clean energy investments are directed to disadvantaged communities, and advance progress towards the state's 2025 energy efficiency target of reducing on-site energy consumption by 185 trillion BTUs of end-use energy savings.

About NYPA

NYPA is the largest state public power organization in the nation, operating 16 generating facilities and more than 1,400 circuit-miles of transmission lines. More than 80 percent of the electricity NYPA produces is clean renewable hydropower. NYPA uses no tax money or state credit. It finances its operations through the sale of bonds and revenues earned in large part through sales of electricity. For more information visit www.nypa.gov and follow us on Twitter @NYPAenergy, Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr and LinkedIn.

About Stewart’s

Founded in 1945, Stewart’s Shops is an employee and family-owned convenience store chain based in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. Stewart’s is known for offering milk, ice cream, coffee, food to go, gasoline, and other convenience items. Today there are over 350 Stewart’s Shops located across 32 counties across upstate New York and southern Vermont.