Donor-funded AEDs win approval after debate over locations and look

The town commission voted to proceed with a staff-recommended placement plan for six donor-funded outdoor AED cabinets, with direction to staff to reduce visual impact and explore alternate siting with donor approval.

Chief (Speaker 9) introduced the community AED program, played a short video and described the safety rationale: "When someone's heart stops, every 2nd matters," a line from the presentation emphasized. Staff said donor Earl and Nancy Stewart provided a check for about $96,000 after town staff worked with them to determine project cost and installation details.

A statement from the Stewarts was read into the record (Speaker 9 reading for the donors): "We paid for the project ourselves," the statement said, urging the commission to "allow these AEDs to be activated and available for the purpose for which they were given." Several residents also spoke in favor of the program while asking the commission to reduce the number of cabinets and tone down their visual prominence.

Residents raised practical and aesthetic concerns: questions about nighttime lighting, cabinet color, whether units would still function after hurricanes (staff noted solar power to maintain operation), and whether police vehicles already carry AEDs (staff confirmed patrol cars do carry units). The public also proposed camouflaging the cabinets (wood surrounds, paint or wraps) and concentrating devices at gathering spaces rather than each dune walkover.

In deliberations, commissioners accepted staff recommendations to shift some proposed locations (for example, the North Beach unit nearer to the existing bike rack and moving the South Beach unit closer to an existing fence and lifesaving device) and added direction to staff to contact the beach club and marina about alternate siting and to test wrapped/painted poles to reduce visual impact. The motion passed on a voice vote recorded as "Aye."