The times they are a-changin’ at Community Board 7.

But it hasn’t been easy.

Last winter, a rift began to form between longtime District Manager Rita Kessler and the relatively new chairman, Greg Faulkner, who was elected by default three years ago.

Early in the summer, after 18 years on the job, Kessler decided she’d had enough and announced she would resign soon after the Board elections, which were shaping into a competitive showdown between two slates of candidates.

On one side was Faulkner, the current chairman, and a slate of newer board members. On the other side, was community stalwart Don Bluestone, a longtime Board member who runs the Mosholu Montefiore Community Center, and a slate of incumbent Board officers.

Faulkner’s slate won convincingly and Bluestone graciously conceded victory, saying Faulkner now had a definitive mandate to lead the Board.

Kessler, who announced her resignation on election night, couldn’t hide her personal feelings, saying loudly, “Lord have mercy on this Board,” when the results were announced.

Weeks later, Kessler was gone and the Board began an exhaustive, months-long search for a new district manager. The borough president’s community board specialist, Tom Lucania, a former district manager, took over on an interim and part-time basis.

Meanwhile, Faulkner began making subtle changes to the committees in an effort to make the Board more effective. The changes were approved by the full Board this fall.

In another interesting development, 2007 saw an influx of nine new Board members. Both Bluestone and Faulkner praised the new crop of local residents for their enthusiasm and activism.

In November, the CB7 search committee chose one of those new Board members, Fernando Tirado, a Health Department employee who lives in Bedford Park, to be the new district manager. Tirado will start his new job on Jan. 7.

Faulkner, who presided over a recent Saturday open house at the Board office, something he plans to do monthly, said he expects the board to grow again in 2008. After adding nine new members last year to bump the total up to 34, Faulkner said that in 2008, “We’re anticipating another nice new crop.”