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Justin Lee is working to make Darien High School the first high school in the country to have a charging station for electric cars. The Darien High junior has been meeting with members of the school administration and representatives from General Electric to have the charging station become a reality and be installed within the year.
"One of the things we were talking about in tech ed class is that people want to buy electric cars, but they don't know where to charge them. They want to go gasoline-free, but parents don't want to buy chargers for their home," Lee said.
The idea came after Lee and fellow Darien High students applied for a $25,000 grant from Connecticut Light & Power for ecoprojects. They lost to Danbury, but Lee was not ready to quit. He emailed a GE official, who told him the company would be willing to donate the charging station to the school.
Hans Otto, new director of facilities and operations for Darien schools, supports Lee and his project. Otto said one issue is finding a good location at the school. "It would be nice if we could have it right out front, but it would probably end up somewhere off the side of the building."
Lee said some problems still need to be worked out, including who would pay for the installation and the electricity to run it. He is confident a contractor could be found who would be willing to do the work at a reduced price. Lee also said raising the price of parking permits for spots near the charging station would help pay for the electricity to run it.
Science teacher Leon Strecker said everybody he's talked to about the project has been supportive and wants to get it done. "I think it would be a great kickoff for the start of the school year."
Lee and Otto are planning to go before the Board of Education this summer to get approval for the project.
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