In a town well known for emotional and sometimes acrimonious town meetings, this year's two-day annual meeting in Oak Bluffs on Tuesday and Wednesday lived up to expectations, as residents debated everything from a new baseball diamond at Veira Park to the regional high school budget.

Kerry Scott, the incumbent selectman who campaigned for reelection on a platform of continued reform and openness in town government, easily defeated challenger Mac Starks during the annual town elections yesterday to win a second three-year term on the five-member board.

Ms. Scott received a total of 608 votes; Mr. Starks received 293 votes.

Total turnout on a rainy, windswept day was 972, or about 30 per cent of the registered voters.

Dianne Powers Is Elected West Tisbury Selectman

By IAN FEIN

Faced with the difficult task of replacing a longtime town leader, West Tisbury voters yesterday elected Dianne E. Powers to the board of selectmen.

Ms. Powers, the Dukes County register of deeds, more than doubled the vote tally of her opponent, Cynthia Riggs, to earn a seat on the board. The final count was 410 to 190.

"I'm just thrilled and a little overwhelmed," Ms. Powers said last night. "I'm thankful for the support, and I hope to live up to it."

While other towns agonized over their town meetings, Edgartown residents breezed through theirs on Tuesday night, approving a $24 million annual town budget in minutes and working through 67 warrant articles in a little over two hours.

In an impressive display of support for the priorities of town authorities, the 200-odd residents who turned out for the meeting failed to approve only a few of the measures put before them.

The cost of living on Martha's Vineyard is about 60 per cent above the national average, and housing costs are almost double, according to a study carried out by the Martha's Vineyard Commission.

Across all indices, or categories measured, from groceries to health care to transport and utilities, the Island was far more expensive than the national average. The standout figure was housing, which scored 196, or 96 per cent above the average.

Peter Martell, owner of the Wesley Hotel in Oak Bluffs, is in deep trouble with his summer staffing. He opens for the season next month, and he has just learned he will not get the staff he needs to make the place run.

"I'm opening May 3 and I've got three desk clerks and I need seven. I don't know where the other four are coming from. I need five chambermaids; I've got two," he said.