Park and Charge Grant - Utility Pole-Mounted Electric Vehicle Chargers

Information

The City of Portland received a US DOE grant to partner with local public utilities to install electric vehicle (EV) chargers on utility poles throughout the city in order to increase access to EV ownership for Portlanders who cannot charge at home and live in areas with few existing public chargers

Project Overview

UPDATE: The US Department of Energy is seeking to terminate this grant. We will continue to update this website as more information is received.

The City of Portland and PBOT understand that access to convenient, affordable, and reliable EV chargers can be a barrier for people looking to purchase an EV, especially as EV chargers are not available in all neighborhoods. To address this, PBOT developed the EV Charging in the Public Right-of-Way policy to encourage the installation of EV chargers near multi-family housing and main streets across the city.

The United States Department of Energy (US DOE) awarded PBOT a grant, in partnership with Portland General Electric and Pacific Power, in 2023 to kick-off implementation of the EV Charging in the Public Right-of-Way policy with a focus on bringing affordable charging to Portlanders who cannot charge at home, such as renters and those living in multi-family housing.

The goals of this project included providing public education and notification, soliciting feedback from Portlanders about where to site future chargers through a map survey, analyzing where EV charging should be expanded citywide, evaluating a newly-streamlined permitting process with a focus on saving time and money, and publishing a Toolkit with these results to help other municipalities replicate Portland's curbside charging policy.

While the US Department of Energy is seeking to terminate the Park and Charge grant as of October 2025, many of the goals of this project have been achieved. This includes conducting an extensive outreach process through which the project team engaged Portlanders across 22 different public events and neighborhood association meetings (see "Public Involvement" section below). Portland General Electric is currently in the process of applying for permits and installing 30 Level 2 (L2) EV chargers mounted on utility poles across its service area.

The City's EV Charging in the Right-of-Way Policy

The City developed an Electric Vehicle Charging in the Right of Way policy that allows the two local, investor-owned utilities and private EV charging companies to install EV chargers curbside. Check out that page to learn more, including why Portland allows this infrastructure in the right-of-way, where EV chargers will be allowed, and what it will look like on our streets.

Public Involvement

Throughout Summer and Fall 2025, project staff attended public events and meetings to share information about the project and ensure that neighborhoods were notified about forthcoming EV charger installations. The project team also shared information about the benefits of EV ownership, highlighting lower maintenance and fuel costs, and incentives to defray purchase costs, including state rebates for new and used EVs. Below is a list of the events the project staff attended:

Washington Park Reservoir Opening - June 14th, 2025
Sunday Parkways, Cully - June 29th, 2025
Powellhurst-Gilbert Transportation Fair - July 19th, 2025
Pride Festival - July 19th, 2025
Montavilla Street Fair - July 27th, 2025
Sellwood-Moreland Summerville Street Fair - August 2nd, 2025
Kerns Neighborhood Association Picnic - August 5, 2025
Homecoming Fest at Unthank Park - August 9th, 2025
Foster-Powell Neighborhood Association Meeting - August 13th, 2025
Jade District Night Market - August 16th, 2025
SE Uplift Land Use and Transportation Committee Mtg. - August 18th, 2025
Northwest District Association Transportation Committee Mtg. - August 21st, 2025
Multicultural Kids Festival - September 7th, 2025
Oregon Electric Vehicle Association Expo - September 13th, 2025
Arbor Lodge Neighborhood Association Mtg. - September 18th,
MLK Dream Run - September 20th, 2025
Mill Park Opening - September 25th, 2025
Electrify PDX Home Electrification Fair - September 27th, 2025
EV Ride and Drive/Indigenous Marketplace - September 28th, 2025
Hollywood Farmers Market - October 4th, 2025
Woodstock Farmers Market - October 19th, 2025
Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods Board Meeting - December 16th, 2025

Do you want an EV charger in your neighborhood?

Fill out our Map Survey to recommend which parts of town where you would like to see get more EV chargers! You may suggest as many locations as you would like. When considering where to suggest a charger location, think about where you live, work, recreate, or shop regularly and where you might find an EV charger useful.

Please note that this tool is intended to gather information about the demand for EV chargers and we cannot guarantee that chargers will be installed at or near every suggested location.