SARANAC LAKE — The village is getting a $482,164 grant from the state to install 30 Level 2 electric vehicle charging ports in municipal parking lots.

On Monday, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced $4.85 million in municipal grants for EV chargers. Of the 30-or-so municipalities in the state, Saranac Lake received the most funding.

“After the installation of these ports, the village of Saranac Lake will have the most municipally owned charging stations within the Adirondack Park,” village Community Development Director Katrina Glynn said.

Glynn wrote the grant applications with Nancy Bernstein, an energy circuit rider at the Adirondack North Country Association, and got nearly the $500,000 maximum.

“I’m pretty stoked,” Glynn said. “It’s a great resource for both residents who have electric vehicles, as well as trying to attract visitors into the area.”

People with electric vehicles plan their trips around places with the infrastructure to charge their cars, she said.

Bernstein, who owns an electric vehicle, said she’s had to avoid traveling to some rural areas in other states because she wouldn’t be able to charge her car when she got there. She said many drivers in big cities like New York, Montreal and Ottawa own EVs.

“They’re not coming unless they can charge,” she said.

She also said it will be helpful for people who can’t have a charger at their home.

“There needs to be enough of them that there’s not someone parked in front of them,” Bernstein said.

The village has already picked out the sites it plans to install them at — eight ports at the old Sears lot on Main Street, six ports at the Dorsey Street lot, two ports at the Berkeley Green parking lot, two ports at the Rusty Nail, six ports at Mount Pisgah and six at Lake Colby.

Glynn said the ports will likely be installed next summer. They’ll need to repair parking lots and dig electric lines to poles.

Currently, the village has two charging ports at one pedestal in the 1-3 Main St. lot.

“There’s quite a bit of public charging, but there needs to be more,” Bernstein said.

There needs to be infrastructure for growth, she said, and having fewer chargers in the region is a barrier for people here buying one or people visiting here in one.

Bernstein said EVs produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions than gasoline vehicles. Greenhouse gas-producing fossil fuels are still used to produce the electricity for the charging, but she said the state is getting higher and higher percentages of renewable energy for its grid.

On Tuesday, at 4:20 p.m., New York Independent System Operator’s real-time dashboard, which tracks energy usage in the state, showed around 38% of energy generated within the state was from fossil fuels or natural gas. The nuclear power made up 23%, hydro made up 20%, wind made up 13% and the rest came from a variety of other renewables. That dashboard updates throughout the day and can be viewed at tinyurl.com/tvwwfmhs.

According to the federal Environmental Protection Agency, EVs burn through around half the greenhouse gases throughout their lifespan — including production, use and end-of-life.

Bernstein said charging is usually cheaper than buying gasoline, and EVs require less maintenance — she never has to change her oil, fix the transmission or repair the exhaust system, because the car does not have them.

The grant requires no match from the village and covers the ports, the installation and related work.

Glynn said the stations will be universal chargers. Tesla vehicles have adapters to use these charging ports. She said the Level 2, 220-volt charging provides 10 to 60 miles of range per hour, depending on the vehicle. Charging from 0% to 80% is expected to take between 4 and 10 hours.

“My administration is committed to advancing the transition to a cleaner and healthier future for our environment benefiting all New Yorkers,” Hochul said in a statement.

DEC Acting Commissioner Amanda Lefton said the grants encourage “the switch to plug-in hybrids and EVs,” and help realize “the clean energy economy of the future.”

“Congratulations to these municipalities for their leadership and making it easier for residents and visitors alike to choose cleaner vehicles with the confidence they’ll be able to charge their cars where and when they need to,” state Energy Research and Development Authority President and CEO Doreen Harris said.

New York is spending around $3 billion to electrify its transportation sector. Currently, the state counts more than 280,000 EVs on the road statewide and more than 17,000 public chargers — the most of any state except California. There are also 4,000 more semi-public charging stations at workplaces and multifamily buildings.

Nearby in the North Country, the town of Jay got $206,403 for two Level 2 charging ports and one DCFC pedestal.

The grant money comes through the state’s Municipal Zero-Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Grants program, which is administered by the state Department of Environmental Conservation. It prioritizes “clean transportation investments in communities most affected by pollution and climate change.”

For questions about the Municipal ZEV program, email ZEVrebate@dec.ny.gov or call the DEC’s Office of Climate Change at 518-402-8448.