Bookmans is not only good for your pocket, but also good for the planet. We're a long-time supporter of environmental programs and a proponent of electric transportation. And now, you can recharge your electric vehicle at several of our Bookmans locations for free. Check out the video here from our YouTube page:

Tucson, Arizona, was once famous for its clean air. People from across the globe flocked to Tucson in hopes of curing their respiratory problems...but that is no longer the case. As Tucson grows and expands, so do the problems relating to our air quality. The biggest culprit? Motor vehicle pollution. Cars are the number one cause of air pollution in Pima County, with residents traveling more than 27 million miles per day, collectively. For every 33 miles driven, one pound of pollution is dumped into the air, generating more than 400 tons of carbon monoxide and 65 tons of ozone precursors affecting global warming, in Pima County alone.

Bookmans, once among the first businesses in Arizona to install electric vehicle, or EV, charging stations, has once again set out to change that. For years, our old charging stations provided EV owners with the opportunity to recharge at their local Bookmans. As new and more efficient electric cars and hybrids begin to enter the market, we wanted to make sure we had up-to-date charging technology to match the newest EV technology.

To make this happen, Bookmans connected with Colleen Crownenshield, manager of the Clean Cities Coalition, a Pima Association of Governments program, which promotes the use and development of clean fuels, clean-fuel vehicles on our streets, and electric vehicle charging stations throughout Tucson and Pima County. Bookmans replaced the outdated EV1 charging stations with the newest Coloumb ChargePoint technology to make sure we could meet consumer demand.

At a recent Tucson City Council Meeting, Bookmans and Crownenshield were recognized for their efforts towards making Tucson a clean, green city. Councilwoman Karen Uhlich and Mayor Bob Walkup presented a proclamation in support of an electric vehicle-friendly community. Crownenshield then announced that Bookmans would be hosting a grand opening celebration for the new ChargePoint station at the Grant Road store.

At the grand opening celebration, the Tucson community was introduced to the new, faster, more efficient Coulomb ChargePoint station. Bob Oldfather, founder of Bookmans, brought classic cars from his EV museum to the event to demonstrate his passion for clean-air transportation. Councilwoman Uhlich read a proclamation announcing that Tucson is now an EV friendly Community. Oldfather also took the stage to offfer a few inspiring words.

"I’m thrilled to finally do this. We had the EV1 chargers and I'm glad that a standard is finally around, so that we can have chargers that everyone can use and a way to pay for it, even though we're not charging for the electricity. I liken this a lot to recycling. We all started it 20 or so years ago and it didn't make economic sense. This is the same kind of thing. It doesn't quite make economic sense yet. But that’s why people have to step up and do it, and battery technology will get better, more people will have electric. I have a guy that works for me that told me he's got 10,000 miles on his GEM car. He rides it every day and its possible, it works!"

After Oldfather spoke, Crownenshield joined him in cutting the ribbon, officially opening the ChargePoint station. The first lucky vehicle to charge up its batteries was a brand new Tesla Roadster traveling from Los Angeles to Detroit to make an appearance at the Detroit Auto Show. Tesla was on a mission to show consumers that EVs can travel long-distance, and Bookmans Grant store was honored to be one of their stops. But the sleek and modern Tesla isn't the only car that can use this fast ChargePoint station. The new Bookmans EV charging station is adaptable to any electric vehicle, including the new Nissan Leaf.

Nissan has chosen Tucson to be one of a small group of test markets for their new, fully-electric Nissan Leaf, which was recently unveiled at the top of Pennington Street Garage in downtown Tucson. Bookmans was invited to check out the car that will help make Tucson a cutting-edge city for electric transportation.

The Nissan Leaf, recently unveiled at the top of the Pennington Street Garage in downtown Tucson during Nissan's 22-stop "Zero Emission Tour," and Bookmans was invited to see the car that will help make Tucson a cutting-edge city for electric transportation. Nissan says that the cars are expected to be available on the mass market in early 2011.

In connection with the Leaf's arrival, Tucsonans should expect to see approximately 200 charging stations popping up all over the city. Bookmans will be among the first to meet consumer demand for EV charging station at both its Grant Road and Ina Road locations, as well as at our store in Mesa. Come get recharged at Bookmans!