Construction at Panther Valley Mall parking lot
Anyone know what’s going on at the front of the road by 517? Could it be charging stations for EV vehicles? Any other guesses or does anybody know?
Hadenough Tesla charging area. The owner of the property was on WRNJ the other day discussing it. He believes while at first a Tesla charging spot, it may become a universal station in the future.
Greg 
Lamppost 
Looking forward to the EV charging station at the Panther Valley Mall.What will it cost for a battery re-charge?
NettoJust curious. I know nothing about EVs, but if it's a Tesla charging station, can any type of EV utilize it? Also, are there a lot of Tesla EVs around here? I guess the traffic from Route 80 would use it.
Lonesome Dove From what the property owner was discussing on the radio interview, he believes while the one on his property will be a Tesla charging station now, it could possibly be modified to accommodate other EV's in the future. I would gather Tesla would be sure to have that ability as they would then have a majority of charging stations in place across the county. I gather it would make sense for them to transition into the EV charging station Uber Lord. LOL
There are a half dozen Tesla's just in our general development area. A few other EV's around too.
GC Yes, look at the Tesla Supercharger map. This location fills a gap on Route 80. The shopping center will get more traffic for the pub, and other businesses there.
iJay "Just curious. I know nothing about EVs, but if it's a Tesla charging station, can any type of EV utilize it?"
From what I understand this is one issue with EVs. I saw a documentary where GM has a proprietary plug so it can't be used with other vehicles nor could they use a Tesla station.
Whip Whip… some models will work with it as long as you buy the adapter and some won’t at all
FYI - Back in June, both Ford and GM worked deals with Tesla to utilize the vast Tesla charging network across the U.S. Other auto-makers will surely follow.
"Tesla struck agreements with GM and Ford to grant their EV owners access to Tesla Superchargers, and to eventually integrate Tesla’s charging tech into GM and Ford vehicles. The deals have broad implications for reliability and mass adoption of EVs."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ok1U7_SIzv8
https://www.cbsnews.com/detroit/news/with-gm-and-ford-embracing-teslas-ev-charging-technology-heres-what-it-means-for-consumers-4/
CommonSense Thanks for the new info. It only makes sense to do cross charging somehow. My first thought was some kind of adapter.
You need to check if the Magic Dock is available on any of the chargers, then the other brands can charge without an adapter. BTW, the other big manufacturers have all agreed to adopt Tesla's standard in 1-2 years. Tesla's charging network is the most reliable, expect to see more.
4catmom Yes, 4catmom, you have to pay. If it were free everyone would give up gas-powered vehicles. That's for sure.
4catmom - I'd guess via a credit card or a special "charge" card (pun intended), cuz it's Not free! I don't own an EV but out of curiosity one day, I asked a person who was charging his Tesla at a station and he told me his "quick charge" cost him $28 that day, he said it was about the equivalent of a 1/2 a tank.
A question I have is, Are these new chargers at PV the Tesla NACS's (which are better) or the standard CCS's (for all other vehicles)....? Driving by, I counted 10 charging units there (known as "Plugs"). An observation / question - I wonder why regular gas stations aren't getting more involved in installing charging stations....? As in... Why would a strip mall install them while the Shell station next door wouldn't...? If I'm a gas station owner, I'd want to do everything possible to turn a potential competitor into a customer.... I have indeed seen a few gas chains offering charging but not many - it's likely an Elon Musk or cost thing.
Aaaaah... and I just answered my own question: Excessive Costs & Fees!!!!! Thank you government & utility co's! This is why gas stations / convenience stores are reluctant to add charging stations:
"Gas stations with convenience stores seem like an obvious location for electric vehicle chargers. Drivers could grab a drink or snack while waiting for their vehicle to charge. But despite available federal funding to build EV chargers, many stores aren’t biting. The reason? High electric utility fees on charging stations make them unappealing – and unprofitable – for convenience store owners."
Thank you all as I'm learning a lot from this thread!
https://www.cnn.com/2022/10/18/business/ev-chargers-convenience-store/index.html
But will that remain a convenience store? That’s one of NJ 7-11 locations that’s up for sale.
Local Gal The vast majority of EV owners charge at home...The only time they need a "charging station" is when they travel...charging an a EV at a fast charger takes too long to work at a gas station..better to have something to do while filling up the EV
Washington Post had an analysis this week of, "Is it cheaper to refuel your EV battery or gas tank? We did the math in all 50 states. "
https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/interactive/2023/electric-vehicle-charging-price-vs-gasoline/
Worth reading if you can access it.
OnTheEdge The figures kept by the electronics in my Bolt EV tell me that I'm getting close to 5 miles per kilowatt hour. The marginal cost for a KWH, according to my JCP&L bill, is less than 15 cents. So 3 cents per mile.
My Honda Pilot gets a bit better than 20 mpg. With gasoline currently at about $3.60, that's 18 cents per mile. My Miata gets better than 30 mpg, which means $12 per mile. If my calculations are correct.
James E Beckman James E Beckman
I think you mean your Miata costs $0.12/mile or 12 cents/mile. Doggone decimal points are easy to miss, or misplace.
Phil D. So you save 6 cents per mile. Over a course of a year I would guess the savings would be $600.00. The EV car probably cost you 5k more than a gas car at least. So it would take you 9 years to break even on the purchase which is just in time to buy a new battery at 10k. By the way they still dont know how to get rid of those batteries yet.
danny zucko I think one of the reasons that convenience stores aren't putting them in is because of the time it takes to charge. If someone were to stop and charge, they would be parked there for about 30-45 minutes. Convenience stores like Quik Chek like quick turnover of people. Come in, get their stuff and leave. Charging stations would require spots for several cars to be parked up to an hour which would reduce the amount of parking spots. Putting it in a place like PV mall makes better sense since there is plenty of parking and people can go to places like the PV Pub for a bite to eat while their car charges.
ManAboutTown If they have the room Wawa's and others are adding. I have not seen dedicated bays replacing fuel pumps as stated the charge time of 20-30 minutes would take up too much "space". With solid state batteries coming out in the future (date TBD) charge times of 5-10 minutes will be the norm and they will start to take over. Years away, but it is starting even in Warren County.
So you save 6 cents per mile. Over a course of a year I would guess the savings would be $600.00. The EV car probably cost you 5k more than a gas car at least.
-----------------
With all the incentives currently offered, I figure my out of pocket cost
for the Bolt is about $24,000. I guess there are plenty of other choices
at that price range, but I've been an engineer all my life (since I got my
first electric train set, I guess) and the new technology appeals to me.
Also, I like the idea of not having to maintain an IC engine.
Anyway, the Bolt replaces the Pilot, not the MIata. The Miata is a
lot of fun, but it's noisy, has little or no extra space in it, and rides
like your typical roller skate. Fun, but not for long trips.
P.V. parking lot spots are now getting numbers and restrictions. More concern about the new survey across the street. After speaking to surveyors, perhaps an expanded parking lot? They didn't know but now have survey markers in Allamuchy SP to the east. Anybody have info on this?
john l The area on the east side of 517 is going to be a parking area for Deer Park. Access to the park became more difficult when Deer Park Road was closed. While the trails can still be accessed from the Villa Madonna School or Waterloo Road, those locations aren’t very convenient to reach the “main” trails.
FarmerJake John I, do you know if you will have to pay for those spots? What do you mean restricted? Just curious as I know people that park there to either get on the bus or ride share.
htownlifer That’s good news for gaining access to deer park but maybe not so good news for the amount of traffic on the trails. Having clear access right off of rt 80 will bring a lot of weekenders from the East that will litter and not respect the trails. Go to stephens on a Monday and take a look at all the trash left by people “visiting.” I know, I’m already bracing for the “it’s a state park and everyone’s welcome!” comments.
Consiiere, there is no river or lake easy to access right at Deer Park, it's undeveloped except for trails - compared to Stephen's with dedicated picnic areas and an easy to access river. The actual trail system of Stephen's is not particularly over used or littered. Same with Tilcon/Iron Gate parking, it has a lake to draw people to swim, fish, boat, hang out.
Deer park has a pond you have to really walk to, with no beach.
htownlifer I was wondering if they are going to charge. As of now I don't know however they do have restriction signs for use. Commuters, tenants and employee parking only, no overnight. You figure with the numbering they may end up charging but can't find anything about it
FarmerJake can you share more info?
The trails off Waterloo are horrible. The one behind Villa Madonna is a long way in. The park road is shot to hell
Will there be new trails established from the new parking area?
The state has neglected the park for decades.
I’m old enough that I remember driving all the way to the lake once on the 80s!
That dilapidated house used to be adorable. Park ranger and family lived there. I went to school with one of the kids. Such a shame.
There is already a trail spur that goes down to the old house and barn (across from the Shell station). They originally wanted to put the parking lot on that existing driveway, but an endangered frog (or turtle or something) was found there so had to move it further north.
From the new parking area, the trail will head up towards the mountain and connect to the existing spur and then to the white trail. It will be a shorter distance than starting at Villa Madonna.
I don’t believe that spur appears on any park maps or All Trails?
I’ve hiked every blazed trail in the park, many in the last few years. This update is very interesting. When will it happen?
Any idea when these chargers are going to go live? Got them all set up and nothing now for several months. Would have thought they would be in place for the holidays with people traveling. Would add some extra foot traffic into the pub or other stores at this time.
Construction has begun for the new Deer Park parking area. The area is covered with crushed stone and it looks like there is paving equipment on site…so maybe the lot will be paved. It’s a lot smaller than I would’ve expected; looks like it’s big enough for maybe 10 cars. That’s going to fill up very fast on nice days! I’m not sure if any work was done to blaze a trail into the park from that location.
10 cars? Ridiculous.
I’d love to know the rationale of not maintaining all those parking lots and roads over all those years. Do you think it would be cheaper to maintain them to start fresh. Of course, if they’re cheapskate and only doing 10 spots that is probably cheaper than having done the maintenance. I sure hope they’re blazing a trail. It would be nuts, not too!
What I wish they would’ve done is put a separate entrance for the mountain bikes from the hikers and everybody on foot.
Well on the Old Deer Park Road - residents had posted signs saying the road was private - so - isn't this an improvement?
catlady65 "They"=NJ SP do not do much in this area, I believe something to do with the designation of Natural Area for thr part of Allamuchy State Park that is Deer Park.
Or more accurately, no ability to develop fee areas in Deer Park/Allamuchy? Hah
Note that 99.9% of trails in DP, Stephen's SP and Allamuchy are maintained by mountain bike trail crew volunteers. The hikers can enjoy it too:)
The construction of the parking lot for the state park highlights the state’s inability to create a larger parking area due to Highland restrictions. I met with the state park rangers, and they informed me that, at most, there will be only 10 to 12 parking spots available because of these restrictions. As locals know, all of the land across from our mall is state park land and will never be developed. In reality, the state has become a victim of its own rules.
Keith DeTombeur Interesting, thanks for the info Keith.
Sounds like the original parking lot down the road would be worth re opening!
Hey, unknown parks with small parking have been a joy of living in the area, for me.
The one across from Villa Matar was almost a secret a few decades ago and you could enjoy the trail around the pond without running into a soul. Jenny Jump is also constrained parking and you can hike the back spine close to Route 80, no people, and some views that rival WV (mostly because our little tight valleys and hills block the horizon, but hey --- it still counts). When all I can see to the horizon for a mile or so is pristine forest, no human touch, and no people around ---- it's a beautiful thing. Even more so if it's in NJ.
So, quit developing the parks. The locals know how to get there. IMO :>)
babbit There were 3 lots for many years, maybe decades.
There was a ranger's house.
Had they been maintained, this wouldn't be an issue.
Luca2 Keith just explained it above Luca2 - restrictions surrounding new lot comstruction size on the state property there
After taking a better look at the parking area, I’d say it might fit 5 or 6 cars. What a joke. In recent years, I’ve visited many states parks in other states up and down the east coast and sadly the NJ park facilities (and upkeep) pales in comparison to every other state.
Uhh Luca Keith said "due to Highlands restrictions" - this was put in place long after Deer Park Road parking lots and the fenced deer preserve became state park/natural area.
The new lights in the park and ride are horrific! They are pointed right at the roadway and are disorienting while driving.
I wonder if a donation of say, $100/year would be enough to gain access to the private Deer Park Road. That used to be my favorite park. I understand the residents not wanting all the traffic destroying their essentially dirt road (some of it was more beaten up than a tank trail) but access to the parking lot seems like something we should be able to work out.
You can get to Deer Park through the new parking lot on 517 across from the mall. Just take the path & when you need to decide if you make a left or right, make the right. You will see pretty quickly one of the overgrown parking lots.
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