Attention Dufferin Heights Owners:
The Electrical Planning Report is mandatory. The delay isn’t.
Signing the petition does not commit you to vote yes. It simply makes sure owners get to decide.
Council has chosen to defer the report to 2028. I am asking owners to sign a petition so we can decide at the October 20 AGM whether getting the information in 2027 is the better choice.
Why this should interest you
We have to get the report anyway
BC requires strata corporations like ours to obtain an Electrical Planning Report by December 31, 2028.
Know before we spend
The Province says an EPR helps a strata understand electrical capacity, future demand and ways to manage within existing capacity and avoid costly upgrades.
Useful beyond EVs
The report considers future electrical demand such as EV charging and heat pumps, along with demand-management options.
Waiting reduces certainty
Until the work is done, we still do not know what our electrical system can realistically support or what future changes may cost.
Practical reasons not to wait
A provider queue already exists
ChargeFWD has confirmed that EPR projects are already being queued and that current completion scheduling is extending into early 2027.
$3,000 rebate while funding lasts
BC Hydro currently offers up to 75% of the cost of an EV Ready Plan, to a maximum of $3,000. Pre-approval is required and funding is available while it lasts.
Current ChargeFWD quote expires this year
ChargeFWD reconfirmed that the current proposal is still available, but only through the end of 2026.
The current numbers
Current ChargeFWD quote
$4,200
Electrical Planning Report alone
$4,875
EPR + EV Ready Plan, after the quoted rebate.
Based on the current proposal, adding the EV Ready Plan costs only about $675 more than obtaining the mandatory EPR alone.
What the EV Ready Plan adds
Charging options for parking spaces
Future-proof electrical design
Load / energy-management options
Cost estimates for budgeting and long-term planning
A pathway toward later EV-ready infrastructure rebates if owners ever choose to proceed
BC Hydro describes an EV Ready Plan as a professional plan that assesses current readiness, considers alternatives and recommends a building-wide solution.
There may be additional savings available
The City of Nanaimo currently advertises an additional rebate of up to $1,000 for an EV Ready Plan for apartment and condo buildings, on top of BC Hydro’s rebate. City funding is also first-come, first-served.
I am not counting this potential City rebate in the $4,875 figure above. It is an additional opportunity that should be confirmed before the strata proceeds.
Why both buildings benefit
1633 — Parkade
EV charging requests are already happening.
A common electrical picture is better than dealing with outlets and chargers one request at a time.
Knowing capacity and constraints gives owners time to plan before electrical demand becomes urgent.
The same electrical planning can inform heat pumps, cooling and other future loads.
1631 — Outdoor parking
Different parking should not mean one building is left out of long-term planning.
The EV Ready Plan should determine what options are realistically feasible for outdoor parking rather than assuming the answer.
Owners can understand technical options and costs before anyone is asked to fund infrastructure.
The mandatory EPR concerns the strata’s electrical system, not one owner’s vehicle.
What approving the report does — and does not do
It does
Give owners a clearer picture of electrical capacity and future demand.
Provide a permanent planning record for the strata.
Help the strata evaluate future choices with better information.
Get the required work underway before the 2028 deadline.
It does not
Approve EV chargers.
Approve rewiring or electrical upgrades.
Commit either building to EV infrastructure.
Require owners to follow every recommendation in the report.
The Province states that an EPR is planning-level information, not a detailed installation analysis. Future electrical work still requires separate professional assessment and approval.
What signing the petition actually means
1.
You sign. You are supporting putting the question before owners.
2.
The item goes on the AGM notice and agenda.
3.
Owners vote on October 20. You remain free to vote yes or no.
4.
If owners approve it, the strata can get into the queue and obtain the information.
Time-sensitive: management has confirmed that the AGM package is mailed 21 days before the meeting. The petition needs to be delivered before the package is finalized and mailed.
Questions owners may have
“Isn’t this really just about EV chargers?”
No. EV charging is one reason electrical capacity is becoming relevant, but the Province specifically identifies EV charging and heat pumps as examples of future electrical demand an EPR helps a strata plan for. The EPR is a whole-strata planning document.
“Why not wait until 2028 if that is the legal deadline?”
We can. The question is whether waiting is in owners’ interest. The report has to be obtained anyway; ChargeFWD says a project queue already exists; the current quote expires at year-end; and available rebate programs are subject to funding. Doing the planning earlier gives owners information and time without committing us to construction.
“We have expensive elevator, hot-water and roof work. Why spend money on this?”
Those are legitimate priorities. The EPR is different in scale: the current quote is about $4,200 for a report that BC already requires us to obtain. The issue is not whether the larger capital projects matter; it is whether postponing a comparatively modest required planning cost for one year is worth delaying the information.
“Why add the optional EV Ready Plan?”
At the current quoted price, the combined package is approximately $675 more than the EPR alone after the quoted BC Hydro rebate. It adds detailed charging options, design concepts, load-management information and cost estimates. Owners can still choose later whether to implement anything.
“Does signing mean I support spending the money?”
No. Signing means you believe owners should have the opportunity to decide at the AGM. You can sign the petition and still vote no at the meeting.
Want to verify the information yourself?
I encourage owners to review the public sources directly:
Province of BC: Electrical Planning Reports for strata corporations
— requirements, deadlines, purpose, funding and how EPRs relate to EV charging.Province of BC: EV charging in strata corporations
— current provincial rules for owner requests and electrical planning.BC Hydro: EV Ready rebates for apartments and condos
— current EV Ready Plan and infrastructure rebate information.City of Nanaimo: EV charger and EV Ready Plan top-up rebates.
The ChargeFWD price, project-queue estimate and year-end quote validity come from the proposal previously obtained for Dufferin Heights and ChargeFWD’s August 27, 2026 written follow-up.
Do you think owners should get to decide?
Sign the petition.
You can still make your final decision when you vote at the AGM.
Questions or want to sign?
Glenn Mathieson
250-667-6734
glenn.mathieson@gmail.com