Groveland, CA — EV maker Rivian is on a mission to change the experience of charging electric vehicles. “Most charging spaces are kind of just like a pull up and sit in your car and charge,” says Bran Niedans, manager of Rivian’s all new Charging Outpost located in the small mountain community Groveland, CA just outside Yosemite National Park’s west entrance. “We wanted to add to that experience of having a place where they could hang out, relax, get a cup of coffee that we provide from a local coffee shop here, or have some snacks, and then just also share this town.”
Rivian is known for their two flagship adventure vehicles, the R1T pickup truck and the R1S three-row SUV. “We’re pushing for allowing people to define adventure as everyone wants to. And so we really want to meet people where they are and provide that opportunity and access, both through our vehicles, but then also enabling those vehicles through charging,” explains Paul Frey, Rivian’s VP of Propulsion, Charging and Adventure Products.
One way Rivian is providing opportunity and access to their customers is the brand new Yosemite Charging Outpost in Groveland. It’s a one stop shop for Rivian owners to charge their car, while at the same time enjoy a cup of coffee, refill their water and purchase snacks as they continue their journey to Yosemite. But it’s the building’s history that’s getting people’s attention.
Originally built in 1870 as a blacksmith and way station, horse drawn wagons would stop here for repairs on their way to Yosemite during California’s Gold Rush. As transportation evolved, the building was eventually turned into a gas station. The building was then damaged in a fire. It was then when Rivian saw an opportunity to expand on its mission of providing fast EV chargers near national parks on their Adventure Charging Network. What came to be is Rivian’s first of its kind “charging outpost”, allowing customers to lounge, fill up on snacks and Rivian merchandise, while at the same time enjoying what Groveland has to offer. Groveland local and Rivian owner Josh Goldstein sees this as a welcomed addition to the small mountain community. “Anything that you can do to just kind of see and feed into the economy of this town that everyone just normally would just pass right through. It’s hugely beneficial.”
In addition to the clean electricity provided to the chargers, the entire building is a net zero building, being powered 100% by solar. But it’s not just the electricity that’s clean, parts of the old building have been repurposed and reused throughout the charging outpost. The concrete from the old gas station was crushed and used to create the retaining wall around the property. Wood from the building was also used to create furniture and the left over sawdust was collected to create countertops throughout the space.
Rivian is known for the community aspect of their customers and Niedans sees this as way to expand and bring more people into the Rivian community. “What I want to see this space be is, is the hub that I think it can be for people to exchange information with each other, to share ideas, to share experiences that they’ve had. I think it just continues to build on the community that Rivian has already established. And just make it more mature and see what they want, what they’re looking for, and be able to be a source for that.”