Please scroll down to the bottom of the article for the most current status.

In July, we reported on a state initiative to expand electric vehicle fast-charging infrastructure. As part of the Volkswagen "diesel-gate" settlement, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection reviewed applications,  selected 27 projects and awarded them funding for electric vehicle charging stations. Although Tesla did not receive funding, Orlando Utilities Commission (OUC) was awarded a $500,000 grant to build a large electric vehicle (EV) charging mobility hub in downtown Orlando. Tesla will be collaborating with them.

The site will feature up to 22 Level 3 charging stations, including 16 Tesla Supercharger terminals and six universal chargers with a capacity of up to 350 kW.  It will be built on OUC-owned land at 129 W Robinson Street near I-4 (next to Ace Café Orlando).

The project is underway and will be completed in 2021.

See vicinity map:

Here is OUC's press release.

OUC-led Partnership Drives Downtown Orlando Electrification with $500,000 Grant to Build EV Charging Station

Update as of October 9, 2020.

Although OUC states that this project is underway, I couldn't find a permit and they haven't broken ground yet.  Workmen, probably surveyors, are onsite.

If you live or work in the area, please take some high-resolution photos of the construction progress and email them to me. 

Thanks.

Larry Chanin

President, Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

email: lfchanin@gmail.com

Website: teslaownersflorida.org

Facebook: Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

In July, Jerome Guillen, President of Automotive at Tesla, solicited suggestions for a service center in the Naples/Fort Myers area.  A couple of months later, the Fort Myers Service Center opened.

Now, Jerome is asking for suggestions for a service center in the South Orlando area.

He is looking for vacant commercial properties previously used for automotive or zoned for automotive uses with at least 15,000 square feet of space.

If you know of a suitable property, please email the details to me and I will forward a message directly to Jerome.  

Thanks.

Larry Chanin

President, Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

email: lfchanin@gmail.com

Website: teslaownersflorida.org

Facebook: Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

On October 6, 2020, we enjoyed an informal Virtual Meetup with club member Mike “Mojo” Mogilewski, owner of SIGNATURE Customs Wraps & Coatings.

SIGNATURE Customs Wraps & Coatings is home to Florida's Tesla vehicle customization experts. Throughout the past 8 years, they have customized hundreds of Teslas, offering wraps, coatings, suspension, and interior enhancements. Their 5,000 square foot climate-controlled facility is located at 1300 Stirling Rd, Dania Beach, FL 33004, just around the corner from the Dania Beach Service Center.

You can reach them at (954) 292-1298.

Mike informed us that he will be opening up another studio in Ocala in a partnership with Rich Rebuilds and the Electrified Garage crew.

Are you a Tesla enthusiasts and feeling a bit of cabin fever during the pandemic?  If you're not a member, but would like to participate in our next Scenic Drive, Virtual Meetup or Socially Distanced outdoor event throughout the state, please click on the Join Us menu item at the top of the page.

If you are a club member who owns or manages a business that is relevant to Tesla owners, and would like to be a featured speaker on a Virtual Meetup, please email me.  

Larry Chanin

President, Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

email: lfchanin@gmail.com

Website: teslaownersflorida.org

Facebook: Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

During the weekend of September 25, 2020, thirty-two club members and their guests enjoyed Hawks Cay Resort, Villas, and Marina located on Duck Key in the Middle Florida Keys. This 60-acre, tropical paradise is truly a unique resort with: 

• Five Pools & Saltwater Lagoon
• Dolphin Connection™
• Beach Sunbathing alongside the Lagoon
• Full-Service Marina with 85 Boat Slips
• Offshore & Inshore Fishing Charters
• 8 Tennis Courts
• Fitness Center
• Water Sports, including Kiteboarding, Kayaking, & Parasailing

The weather cooperated. The few times it briefly rained, it was mostly at night.  Due to the pandemic, we had to curtail indoor group events and the group sunset cruise. However, on Friday, we gathered, socially distanced, at the Tiki Grill Bar for some libations.  That was followed by a private group dinner, socially distanced at the covered patio of the Sixty-One Prime restaurant. While there, we enjoyed live entertainment and a Roaring Twenties costume competition.  A couple who were guests of one of our club members won.

Many thanks go to Rachelle Stone for making group arrangements with the resort.

Here are photos featuring a lot of smiling faces: 

Are you a Tesla enthusiasts and feeling a bit of cabin fever during the pandemic?  If you're not a member, but would like to participate in our next Scenic Drive, a Virtual Meetup, or socially distanced outdoor event, please click on the Join Us menu item at the top of the page.

Larry Chanin

President, Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

email: lfchanin@gmail.com

Website: teslaownersflorida.org

Facebook: Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

I have been looking for a Supercharger Station in Fort Pierce because we discovered a permit application for the Canoe Creek Service Plaza that was incorrectly titled Fort Pierce Service Plaza.  I figured that the application for Canoe Creek may have been cut and pasted from another application. 

So far, I haven’t found a permit application for the Port St. Lucie – Fort Pierce Service Plaza, but I did locate a permit for a Supercharger Station at a nearby Wawa.  It's address is 5575 Okeechobee Rd, Fort Pierce, FL 34947.

Here's a vicinity map:

This proposed Supercharger Station is strategically located near the intersections of I-95, the Florida Turnpike and State Road 70 (Okeechobee Rd)

Here's a Google view of the Wawa parking lot:

Work has started. It looks like there will be 8 charging terminals.  The four boxes with the arrows pointing upward house two terminals per box.  Based on this photo, I believe that the station will be located in the red rectangle on the previous image. I believe that the Supercharger cabinets will be installed to the extreme left of the photo.

Update as of October 2, 2020.

This Supercharger Station is now operational.

Larry Chanin

President, Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

email: lfchanin@gmail.com

Website: teslaownersflorida.org

Facebook: Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

Please scroll down to the bottom of the article for the most recent updates.

There has been a lot of recent interest on the subject of an imminent opening of a long-waited Naples Service Center.  In July, Jerome Guillen, President, Automotive at Tesla, got our attention. He posted the following solicitation on LinkedIn asking for suitable spaces for service centers, specifically referencing Naples, Florida.

Yesterday, after receiving a lot of rumors, I located a building permit for the Naples Service Center.  It is actually in Fort Myers at a former AutoMatch USA location at 8900 Colonial Center Dr., Fort Myers, FL 33905.

Here is an excerpt of the permit.

Here is a vicinity map:

The new Service Center is located less than a mile from the Supercharger Station at Dani Dr.

Update as of September 11, 2020.

The Service Center doesn't have Tesla signage yet, but it is reported that crews are working inside the facility.

Update as of September 15, 2020.

Update as of September 18, 2020.

Our latest rumor is that they will be open for business on Monday, September 21, 2020.

Update as of September 20, 2020.

Our article was referenced by Phil Fernandez with the Naples Daily News.

In the Know: What's Elon Musk up to in Southwest Florida, your questions and more on eastern Collier development.

Update as of September 22, 2020.

The Service Center is now open.

Update as of October 1, 2020.

During these Coronavirus times the customer lobby is a bit Spartan. ;-) 

If you live or work nearby, please send me some high-resolution photos of the interior of the facility.

Thanks.

Larry Chanin

President, Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

email: lfchanin@gmail.com

Website: teslaownersflorida.org

Facebook: Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

The editor of Supercharge.info, the unofficial website that tracks Supercharger installations, has located another active permit application for a future Supercharger Station near Jacksonville. 

The ID portion of the permit application show that this is a Tesla application and the Electrical Contractor has been selected.

The Overview portion of the permit application provides a description of the work which is not entirely accurate.  As can been seen, the application calls for two Supercharger cabinets to power 8 charging terminals.  That means that this will be a Version 3 installation.  The description states "INSTALL (8) 120 KW TESLA CHARGING POSTS", but Version 3 charging terminals are rated at 250 kW.

This station is not currently listed on Tesla’s official Find Us web page.

The Supercharger Station will be located at the Winn-Dixie at 703 Chaffee Rd S, Jacksonville, FL 32221.

Here is a vicinity map:

The red arrow shows the location of the future Supercharger Station. To the extreme right is the location of the existing Jacksonville Supercharger Station.

Here's the Google aerial shot of the Winn-Dixie parking lot. Someone has posted a pin for the future Supercharger, but it doesn't mark the exact location.  

Update as of September 7, 2020.

Construction has not only started, but it appears that this Supercharger Station is nearly operational.  

Here is the precise location of the Supercharger Station in the Winn-Dixie parking lot.  There are five charging stalls located toward the top of the red rectangle with an additional three located on the bottom. 

This photo was taken north of the site looking south toward the entrance of the parking lot.  The five charging stalls are in the foreground and the three stalls are in the background.

This image is portion of the previous photo zoomed to show the two Version 3 Supercharger cabinets, the switchgear and utility transformer.

Update as of September 15, 2020.

This photo was taken north of the site looking north.

Update as of September 20, 2020.

The navigation systems are displaying that this Supercharger Station is partially open. 

Updated as of October 13, 2020.

This station is fully operational.

People working or living nearby are asked to periodically visit the site to take high-resolution photos of the construction progress and send them to me.

Thanks.

Larry Chanin

President, Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

email: lfchanin@gmail.com

Website: teslaownersflorida.org

Facebook: Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

Mary Bonnin of Panama City Beach visited the Busy Bee’s Tesla Supercharging station on Monday to charge her Tesla Model Y. [NATHAN COBB/THE NEW HERALD]

Club member Mary Bonnin was featured in the article linked below in the Panama City News-Herald.

Panama City Beach gets its first Tesla supercharging station at newly opened Busy Bee

I also want to thank Elizabeth Waring, president, and CEO of Busy Bee, for hosting the Supercharger Stations at the Busy Bees at  Panama City Beach and at Live Oak.

Larry Chanin

President, Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

email: lfchanin@gmail.com

Website: teslaownersflorida.org

Facebook: Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

One of the members of the Tesla Motors Club forum found a permit application for a Supercharger Station at the Canoe Creek Service Plaza on the Florida Turnpike.  The title of the project is a bit confusing because instead of referencing the Canoe Creek Service Plaza, it names the Fort Pierce Service Plaza. Apparently, some overworked individual cut and pasted information from another document and forgot to edit it.

Assuming the details are correct, the application indicates that Tesla, in collaboration with the Florida Department of Transportation, plans to install 16 Version 3 charging terminals at the Canoe Creek Service Plaza.

Here is a vicinity map:

Here's a Google street view of the Service Plaza:

I'm guessing that the Supercharger Station will be sited  on the north end of the parking lot.  That would be to the left of this photo.

If anyone is visiting this service plaza, if you see any signs of construction, please take some high-resolution photos and send them to me.

Thanks.

Larry Chanin

President, Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

email: lfchanin@gmail.com

Website: teslaownersflorida.org

Facebook: Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

Club member Pam Vernich and her 92-year-old mom are the owners of the 10th installation of the Tesla Solar Roof tiles on the East Coast of the US. It’s an installation at their farm in Maryland.

On September 12, 2020, Pam discussed the fun and headaches in being one of the first clients on the East Coast to work with SolarCity / Tesla Energy during the four-year process. The installation went into service this May 2020.

Pam provided the following Powerpoint presentation:

Tesla Solar Roof

Here's some screenshots:

I want to thank Pam for sharing her solar experience.

Are you a Tesla enthusiasts and feeling a bit of cabin fever during the pandemic?  If you're not a member, but would like to participate in our next Scenic Drive, a Virtual Meetup, or socially distanced outdoor event, please click on the Join Us menu item at the top of the page.

Larry Chanin

President, Florida Tesla Enthusiasts

email: lfchanin@gmail.com

Website: teslaownersflorida.org

Facebook: Florida Tesla Enthusiasts