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Owatonna, MN - Here's what a little advocacy can do

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bonnie

I play a nice person on twitter.
Feb 6, 2011
16,429
9,943
Columbia River Gorge
I was frustrated that there was no place to charge in my hometown. Not even a lone J1772 ...

So planning ahead, I contacted the management team at the Holiday Inn, Owatonna last fall - I want to be able to drive my EV to Owatonna and charge each night. And guess what! They put in THREE. Two HPWCs and a J1772.

(Minnesota owners - I'm sure the manager would be thrilled to host an event there. PM me for contact info. And in any case, if you're driving by, even if not stopping to charge, please stop in to say thank you. They're right behind Cabela's, on I-35.)

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  • Informative
Reactions: FlyinLow
Nice, Bonnie! Alas, your hometown is south of Mpls. I am planning to return to California from Milwaukee in May, and really, really want to see the Ronald Reagan Minuteman Nuclear Missile Site in Cooperstown, North Dakota. But charging is a virtual wasteland from Mpls to and through North Dakota. The route is doable if I charge at RV Parks east of Fargo and again at Cooperstown's City Park, then making a beeline to Aberdeen SD to charge at the Marriott's 30A before returning to I90. But this just seems like one full day of charging for 2 days of driving.

I was hoping that Owatonna was northwest of Mpls within a reasonable distance of I94! [Sigh!]
 
I wasn't sure how much I should mention Tesla's hand in this, but now have confirmation :). Once I found a place for chargers (thanks again to the Holiday Inn manager, who was very open to this), I put Tesla in the loop.

From email from Tesla today:

What really helps is a warm hand off, so if you want to point out that the reason it went quickly is that you connected the already interested GM with the team here, that would be super cool. People can always reach out to [email protected] to get connected with a Project Manager who can work with the hotel, or they can fill out our web form to suggest a property: https://teslafactory.wufoo.com/forms/destination-charging/


The point, of course, is if you do the initial legwork, you're likely to have better results than if you just send Tesla a note telling them where you'd like to see charging.

- - - Updated - - -
you may want to help them get it listed on Teslas "Find Us" page...I did not see it there and I am sure people will be happy to support this business if they know.

They're already doing that, uploading a form that Tesla uses so that they can be added. I also gave them Plugshare's website, so they could add there, too.

- - - Updated - - -

Nice, Bonnie! Alas, your hometown is south of Mpls. I am planning to return to California from Milwaukee in May, and really, really want to see the Ronald Reagan Minuteman Nuclear Missile Site in Cooperstown, North Dakota. But charging is a virtual wasteland from Mpls to and through North Dakota. The route is doable if I charge at RV Parks east of Fargo and again at Cooperstown's City Park, then making a beeline to Aberdeen SD to charge at the Marriott's 30A before returning to I90. But this just seems like one full day of charging for 2 days of driving.

I was hoping that Owatonna was northwest of Mpls within a reasonable distance of I94! [Sigh!]

Yep, sorry. It was all about what I wanted :). But a placement in Owatonna picks up the highway 14 E-W traffic corridor (think Mankato - Rochester), in addition to N-S on I35.

So identify a spot that would make traveling easier, call the hotel and talk to the general manager and see if they're open to it. If you want to pm me, we can chat about what points I stress in those phone calls. I've made more than a few of those calls and it gets easier and easier - party because I'm more determined, but even more so because electric vehicles are becoming more mainstream.

Go git 'em!
 
Hahah, yes you DID surprise me with that photo. And unknown to you at the time, you were about a block away from the senior care facility where my 94 year old mom is.

I was totally totally caught off-guard, and pinged local friends to "watch for a yellow Roadster and buy the driver a drink if you see him". You missed out!
 
This is great. Are those HPWC's at 100/80 amps? I have been doing some proactive work as well, and with huge support from Tesla there is now an HPWC and a J1772 in Ely, the process is in motion on the Gunflint Trail, and a site in Duluth is looking like a go as well.

That sign is awesome! Not likely to get ICE'd.

Thanks of all the work Bonnie and thanks to Tesla for doing so much for EV implementation/adoption.

In other MN charging news, there were zero Chademos as of 11/1/14 and now MN has seven.
 
While I'd by lying if I said I didn't appreciate all the kudos :), what I'd REALLY like is for people to think about where they need charging (because undoubtedly others need it there, too) & make a couple of phone calls to find a willing hotel. Tesla WILL help with equipment, maybe even the install - and you (and all of us) get another charging option in a place that didn't have any prior.

I'm thinking of driving my Roadster to Minnesota in August (unless I have my X by then!). If I do, maybe we can all meet up and go for a drive in the beautiful fall Minnesota weather.
 
This is GREAT. I have family living in Owatonna and I've been charging my P85 on their 110v outlet. So nice to have this in Owatonna. Thanks for your efforts.


I was frustrated that there was no place to charge in my hometown. Not even a lone J1772 ...

So planning ahead, I contacted the management team at the Holiday Inn, Owatonna last fall - I want to be able to drive my EV to Owatonna and charge each night. And guess what! They put in THREE. Two HPWCs and a J1772.

(Minnesota owners - I'm sure the manager would be thrilled to host an event there. PM me for contact info. And in any case, if you're driving by, even if not stopping to charge, please stop in to say thank you. They're right behind Cabela's, on I-35.)

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