{"id":2622,"date":"2023-08-28T09:39:32","date_gmt":"2023-08-28T13:39:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swtchenergy.com\/?p=2622"},"modified":"2025-11-20T11:39:04","modified_gmt":"2025-11-20T16:39:04","slug":"the-lofts-at-beacon-future-proofed-their-building-business-with-a-scalable-ev-charging-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swtchenergy.com\/blog\/client-profile\/the-lofts-at-beacon-future-proofed-their-building-business-with-a-scalable-ev-charging-system\/","title":{"rendered":"The Lofts at Beacon Future-Proofed their Building & Business with a Scalable EV Charging System\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

A 173-unit apartment complex in Beacon, a small community along the Hudson River in New York State, is seeing a surge of electric vehicles and resident satisfaction after installing 10 new EV chargers.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Management at<\/span> The Lofts at Beacon<\/span><\/a>, a residential redevelopment on the site of a former carpet mill, began hearing from residents about EV charging when work began on a second building on the property in 2022, adding 89 rental units to the 84 that were already onsite. \u201cWe started to get a lot of questions from people asking if we were going to install EV chargers,\u201d\u00a0 said property manager Nicole Corneyea. \u201cThere were several people who were very excited about using them.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Fast forward to mid-August, 2023, with the SWTCH EV charging system fully operational, the chargers have quickly become a welcome addition to the property, and community at large.<\/span>\u00a0

\n \u201c<\/span>\n
\n We’re excited about providing EV charging at our property now. As one of the few multi-family properties in Beacon offering this amenity, it sets us apart while making a positive environmental contribution.\n <\/blockquote><\/div><\/span><\/p>\n

The chargers draw visitors who want to top up their batteries while they stroll through Beacon\u2019s artist district or enjoy nearby nature attractions like Fishkill Creek and Waterfall.<\/span><\/p>\n

All of which makes EV charging one of the best ways to retain existing residents and attract new ones who\u2019ve been thinking about buying an EV, said Jake Berdugo, founder and CEO of Powerup EV Solutions, the project\u2019s project manager and installer. He added that chargers are quickly becoming a must-have amenity in multi-family buildings, right up alongside gym facilities and dog parks.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI would say don\u2019t think, just do,\u201d Berdugo advised. \u201cEVs are here to stay. In order to stay ahead of your competition you must install chargers on your property, especially when incentives are being offered.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Those incentives currently include <\/span>funding of US$4,000 per charger<\/span><\/a> under New York State\u2019s Charge Ready 2.0 program, announced in July 2023, plus a one-time incentive of <\/span>up to 100% of the cost of electrical infrastructure<\/span><\/a> for commercial customers of local power and gas company <\/span>Central Hudson<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Where Convenience Meets Values<\/h3>\n

David Stocks was thrilled when he learned that The Lofts would be installing EV chargers. A tenant since 2019, with his gas-powered vehicle reaching the end of its road, he ran out and bought an electric SUV as soon as he saw the chargers online.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t want to buy a new car until it could be an EV,\u201d said Stocks. But he knew that charging infrastructure was \u201cpretty slim around Beacon,\u201d and \u201cif you don\u2019t have charging at home, it\u2019s not really worth having an EV.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

At first, Stocks said he was afraid The Lofts would only install a couple of chargers, leading to competition among residents and the community for the available spots. So it was reassuring to see management start out with 10 units\u2014and he said they\u2019re already in demand.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m seeing more and more electric cars as I\u2019m charging mine, two or three or four at a time. So that\u2019s happening.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

It helps that the SWTCH app is so easy to use. Stocks said it worked perfectly as soon as he signed on, and even when he had to replace his debit card number, the process was smooth and simple.<\/span><\/p>\n

Stocks said his EV charging experience brought home the message that \u201cit\u2019s not just a convenience factor. It\u2019s an economic factor. It\u2019s not like when you own a home\u2014if you live in a rental complex and there\u2019s no charger, you don\u2019t have any other option. But if you can buy an EV, you have this kind of double whammy, because you don\u2019t have to install the home charging infrastructure when it\u2019s right outside your door. That\u2019s a big win from my point of view.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Skyrocketing Demand for EV charging at MURBs<\/h3>\n

Stocks\u2019 experience explains why the multi-unit residential building (MURB) sector has seen growing interest in EVs and EV chargers. Lately, Berdugo said, the market is taking off.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cJust within a year, we\u2019ve noticed the number of requests skyrocket,\u201d he said. \u201cEven in the last few months, the demand has grown exponentially,\u201d with property owners looking for site visits and feasibility studies to get a sense of how many chargers to install.<\/span><\/p>\n

Some of the owners aren\u2019t even asking <\/span>whether<\/span><\/i> to get EV charging onboard\u2014their main questions are how many and how fast. But even so, \u201ceducation is still very important,\u201d Berdugo said. \u201cThis is still relatively new, and people don\u2019t always understand how it works or how the income streams happen.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

One commonly-asked question is how much extra a property will pay for electricity after users plug in. The answer: EV charging is about revenue, not cost.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n \u201c<\/span>\n
\n The charging fee covers the landlord\u2019s costs and generates modest net revenue, making charger installations a powerful benefit for residents and an obvious choice for landlords looking to attract and retain residents.\n <\/blockquote><\/div><\/span><\/p>\n

Through the process, Berdugo shared that \u201cwe explain who we are and who SWTCH is, educating the landlord about the two entities they\u2019ll be working with. We do the install, and SWTCH\u2019s network and charging system and support is with you to support your chargers and drivers at every step of the way.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Plan Today for your Future Residents<\/h3>\n

For a property like The Lofts at Beacon, the income from EV charging is \u201ckind of like icing on the cake,\u201d Berdugo said. With interest in EVs surging across North America and beyond, \u201cthis is one of the amenities that are needed in multi-family these days,\u201d he explained. \u201cIf you don\u2019t have chargers on your property, those who have or want to get an electric vehicle will not rent from you,\u201d and long-standing residents might be less likely to stay.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cRetention is huge, because people who weren\u2019t considering it before are now buying electric cars. Access to charging would actually cause them to stay at the property longer.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In older buildings, EV charging can also be a catalyst for system improvements that deliver a series of other benefits. Multi-family structures that date back to the 1970s lack the electrical capacity for universal EV chargers, but that\u2019s often a sign of bigger problems: with a panel upgrade, an owner can make a property more attractive in other ways, like allowing residents to run their own washer\/dryers for the first time.<\/span><\/p>\n

Over time, working with SWTCH makes it easier for properties to manage the increase in charger demand. At The Lofts, the 10 chargers onsite today are all on individual circuits. But with<\/span> SWTCH Control<\/span>TM<\/sup><\/span><\/a>, the property could expand to as many as 40 units through smart load management, with no need for electrical upgrades.<\/span><\/p>\n

Even when there\u2019s no apparent demand for EV chargers, the new rule of thumb is that if you build it, they will come. Berdugo recalled one building that installed 16 chargers, though not a single tenant had asked for them.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe property manager got four calls from people who saw them being installed. They asked when the units would be activated, because now they could buy EVs. Which is incredible. It\u2019s saving the environment. There are so many benefits.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Future-Proofing the Business<\/h3>\n

EV charging isn\u2019t often at the top of the agenda when a new building is under construction, and it\u2019s hard to justify installing dozens of chargers when only a handful of residents will use them immediately. But with the United States and Canada introducing generous electric vehicle incentives, and consumers leaping onboard, MURB owners\u2019 ability to install the equipment and easily manage rising demand is about future-proofing the business.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re starting to see proposed taxes on gas vehicles,\u201d Berdugo said. \u201cThis is real. We\u2019re going to see these things over the next few years, and demand for EVs is going to skyrocket. We want to be sure we\u2019re ready for it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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A 173-unit apartment complex in Beacon, a small community along the Hudson River in New York State, is seeing a surge of electric vehicles and resident satisfaction after installing 10 new EV chargers. Management at The Lofts at Beacon, a residential redevelopment on the site of a former carpet mill, began hearing from residents about […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":2625,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"slim_seo":{"title":"The Lofts at Beacon Future-Proofed their Building & Business with a Scalable EV Charging System\u00a0","description":"A 173-unit apartment complex in Beacon, a small community along the Hudson River in New York State, is seeing a surge of electric vehicles and resident satisfac"},"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2622","post","type-post","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-client-profile"],"acf":[],"lang":"en","translations":{"en":2622},"pll_sync_post":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swtchenergy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2622","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swtchenergy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swtchenergy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swtchenergy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swtchenergy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2622"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/swtchenergy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2622\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6415,"href":"https:\/\/swtchenergy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2622\/revisions\/6415"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swtchenergy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2625"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swtchenergy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2622"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swtchenergy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2622"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swtchenergy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2622"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}