As Illinois and the country look to promote a transition to electric vehicles in the coming years, Crystal Lake will look to add opportunities to build more charging stations in the area.

The first step in that process will be to adjust zoning language that restricts their construction.

At its meeting Tuesday, the Crystal Lake City Council will vote on removing sections in the city’s codes that limits where and how electric vehicle charging stations can be placed. If the council gives its approval, the proposal would go to the city Planning and Zoning Commission for review and recommendation.

Removing the language would increase the number of charging stations per property beyond the current limit of two and allow stations to be built near or along city streets, as opposed to set back within parking lots. Language that restricts charging stations from being built on handicapped accessible spaces would also be removed.

According to the document, charging stations can be built at parking spaces as long they don’t affect a property’s ability to meet parking requirements.

The state Legislature is considering a new act which would promote, and even require, electric vehicle charging stations to be built in new and redeveloped properties statewide, according to the agenda packet. The act is currently in the Illinois House for review.

Local developers and commercial property owners also requested that the city revisit the restrictions so they could start incorporating them into their sites, according to council records.

Five electric vehicle charging stations are located in Crystal Lake and 13 in McHenry County overall, according to Chargehub.com.

The Chicago area overall ranked 36th out of 60 major U.S. cities in a 2020 study by GreenBiz evaluating current electric vehicle infrastructure, good for a “moderate” score designation. The city of Chicago ranked sixth among all U.S. cities with a population of more than 250,000 for public transportation, according to a 2019 study by U.S. News and World Report.

The City Council is set to meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday at City Hall, 100 W. Woodstock St.