Chilmark voters flew through their annual town meeting in just over 30 minutes late Monday afternoon, approving a $10.7 million town operating budget and spending to pay for school repairs,

Face coverings were required. — Ray Ewing

Held at the Chilmark Community Center as usual, but outdoors this year due to the pandemic, the annual town meeting had a decidedly different cast.

With a quorum of 25 required, turnout was expected to be light this year but in fact was strong, all things considered. A total of 84 voters, faces covered, most wearing sunglasses on a bright June day, took their seats six feet apart on the Community Center basketball courts. Framed by the green tennis backboard, longtime moderator Everett Poole called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m., wearing a floral red mask and straw hat adorned with a swordfish pin.

As the sun slanted across the courts, all 18 articles on the warrant — cut down this year with most major spending items postponed to the fall — were approved unanimously with little discussion. Various amendments were made to a handful of articles on the town meeting floor, beginning with slight cuts in school spending.

Voters approved an amendment to reduce the town’s assessment to the regional high school district by $9,913 and reduce the town assessment to the up-Island regional school district by $5,496. The amendment came at the recommendation of Vineyard schools superintendent Matthew D’Andrea and reflects recent budget reductions in the two school districts.

Another amendment reduced the town’s share of covering a shortfall in the Dukes County budget by $4,638.

Despite the unusual year, the meeting saw a strong turnout of 84 voters. — Ray Ewing

The largest single request for spending, $169,136 to pay for the town’s share of a window replacement project at the Chilmark School, was approved unanimously. The funding includes design, procurement, installation and a project manager. West Tisbury and Aquinnah, also members of the regional school district, will be asked to pay the remaining $42,000.

Voters also unanimously approved a separate school spending request of $5,216 as the town’s share of replacing the regional high school’s dust collection system. Both school spending requests also hinge on a ballot question at the town election Wednesday exempting the spending from the provisions of Proposition 2 1/2, the state-mandated tax cap. The town election is June 10.

Voters also approved the transfer of $280,000 into the town stabilization fund. The bulk of the money, $130,000 will go into the general stabilization fund, while $100,000 will go toward the highway stabilization fund and $25,000 will go into both the fire department and police vehicle stabilization funds.

Voters also approved three spending requests using Community Preservation Act funds totaling $454,000. Funding for community housing for homeless residents, the restoration of the baseball field at the Chilmark School and smaller requests for open space and historic resources funding were all approved.

Voters also unanimously approved:

•$9,900 for three firefighting personal protective equipment sets;

•$33,470 for the town’s share of maintenance and upgrades to the regional communication center;

Democracy in action in a different setting this year. — Ray Ewing

•$32,828 for the operating costs of five regional services provided through Dukes County, including social services, the CORE program, Healthy Aging; Martha’s Vineyard, substance abuse prevention programs and the healthy aging task force;

•$8,990 for the town’s share of the up-Island regional school district’s roofing design project at the West Tisbury School.

When Mr. Poole called for a motion to adjourn the meeting, a small gust of wind caught a paper warrant, sending it through the distanced crowd of voters like a lone piece of confetti.

Selectman Warren Doty thanked voters for turning out. And he thanked town officials for keeping the town running through the pandemic.

“I would like to honor the folks who have been keeping Chilmark going in the past three months . . . This has been an extraordinary time for all of us,” Mr. Doty said. “This is the latest we have ever had town meeting in the year. But thank you all for coming tonight, because now we have a budget passed for the year that starts in just 20 days.”