ROCHESTER — In a vote of three for and two against, town accountant and former town administrator Suzanne Szyndlar was appointed to the Board of Assessors in Rochester on Monday, Aug. 8.

She was one of two candidates considered for the role, along with former board member Debra Lalli.

The position, which is an elected one, helps determine the value of a property for local real estate taxation purposes. If the role becomes vacant, the position is appointed by the town for the remainder of the term.

The role reopened in July when Lalli announced her retirement from her role as the town’s Assessment Administrator, which required her to resign from all other positions in order to collect her retirement.

After that administrative step, Lalli could collect retirement and still apply for any open board positions, including her previous one.

Lalli had to wait the required one day after her resignation on July 17, and then she reapplied. Szyndlar also applied for the newly opened position, meaning Lalli would have competition to return to her role.

“We are in the middle of re-evaluation and it would make it easier for the continuity of the board to continue with Deb,” said Jana Cavanaugh, member of the Board of Assessors, at the Aug. 1 Select Board meeting.

The Select Board disagreed with appointing Lalli without considering Szyndlar.

Select Board member Brad Morse said that looking at Szyndlar’s application, he could see the advantages of having a “financial person” serving on the board.

Select Board member Woody Hartley suggested holding interviews before having a vote, which would be decided jointly by the Select Board and Board of Assessors.

“I see pros and cons both ways,” said Hartley of choosing from the two different candidates.

On Aug. 8, the Select Board and Board of Assessors conducted the interviews of Lalli and Szyndlar together in the same room, asking them prepared questions about their interest in the role.

Szyndlar has 22 years of municipal experience, nine of which she worked as an assessor from 2001 to 2009.

She gave up the position to work as the town accountant for Rochester and Mattapoisett, and said that she now feels the opportunity would work well with her position as the town’s finance director.

“I feel like I bring a lot to the table with my background,” she said. “I’m a team player. I like working for the town and I enjoy being an assessor.”

Lalli stated that she also has 22 years of municipal experience, however all of those years have been in the assessors office.

“Right now is a critical time as [the board] goes through recertification,” said Lalli. “I feel it is unfair to the taxpayer to appoint someone new during this critically busy time.”

The two then answered questions where they were asked to define the role of the assessor, define the difference between board member and staff member, and describe their understanding of the tax rate.

Cavanagh nominated Lalli to the Board of Assessors. Cavanagh and fellow board member Diana Knapp voted yes to the nomination, and all three members of the Select Board voted no.

Morse made the motion to nominate Suzanne Szyndlar. The three members of the Select Board voted yes, and Cavanagh and Knapp voted no.

In a three to two majority vote, Szyndlar was appointed to the Board of Assessors for Rochester.

The term expires in 2023, when the position will be up at town election.