GeographyJobs.com

City & County of San Francisco

Planner II

Appointment Type
Permanent Exempt (PEX), Full-Time appointment not to exceed three (3) years.  This position is exempt from the Civil Service rules pursuant to San Francisco Charter Section 10.104-18 and serves at the discretion of the Appointing Officer.

There is a potential that this position may be approved for Permanent Civil Service (PCS) in the future.  If/When approved as a PCS position, the candidate selected for this position will be required to participate, be successful, and reachable in the 5278 Planner II examination and then selected through an open competitive process in order to be considered for Permanent appointment.

Introduction

The San Francisco Planning Department has one opening for a 5278 Planner II position to join our Citywide Planning Division.  We are looking for candidates with a background in urban planning and specifically transportation policy interest and experience.  This position will serve a broad set of transportation policy objectives, including integrating land use and transportation planning, and will assist with development and implementation of a long term transportation vision and strategy for San Francisco being led by the Planning Department in partnership with other local and regional transportation agencies. 

The San Francisco Planning Department plays a central role in guiding the growth and development in our City.  The Department works with other City agencies and the community to help achieve great planning for a great city.  The Citywide Planning Division is presently embarking on the creation of long term citywide transportation vision and strategy with SFMTA and SFCTA. 

Our mission, under the direction of the Planning Commission, shapes the future of San Francisco and region by:  generating an extraordinary vision for the General Plan and in neighborhood plans; fostering exemplary design through planning controls; improving our surroundings through environmental analysis; preserving our unique heritage; encouraging a broad range of housing and a diverse job base; and enforcing the Planning Code. 

The Department serves a broad range of constituents, including the citizens of San Francisco, community organizations, elected and appointed policymakers, builders, architects, property owners, tenants, and advocacy groups.  All rely on the City's General Plan and the Planning Code to achieve the City's development goals

The Citywide Division is responsible for the long-range planning of San Francisco. The Division develops policy, maintains and oversees compliance with the City’s General Plan, prepares and implements community plans, acts as the urban design resource for the city, and gathers and analyzes data in support of land-use policy. The Citywide Division develops plans and proposes policy on a wide range of topics, including housing, transportation, urban design, land use, and sustainability policy and development of long-range plans at a city-wide or neighborhood scale.

This is an opportunity to work in a dynamic, inter-disciplinary, and innovative department and share in our vision to make San Francisco the worlds’ most livable urban place – environmentally, economically, socially and culturally. We work in a collaborative, team-oriented environment with opportunities to work on a wide variety of projects and topic areas, both individually and on project teams. In performing our planning work, we work closely with staff of other City and regional agencies, the development community, and the general public. Community outreach and engagement is a big part of our work, and we hold frequent public forums to present and get input on our work.

General Description

Under general direction, the Planner II performs journey level planning work. The Planner II is responsible for conducting investigations and performing analyses to prepare reports and recommendations pertaining to complex planning issues and problems. The Planner II may provide project management or independent work on minor planning projects. The Planner II may perform supervised work individually or as part of a project team.

The essential functions of the Planner II positions in the Citywide Planning Division include, but are not limited to:

• Assisting in the development of long-range citywide or neighborhood plans and programs;.
  
• Assisting in the preparation, revision and updating of the General Plan and/or Planning Code;
  
• Assisting with community outreach and engagement processes;
  
• Preparing recommendations for Department, Planning Commission and other city Commissions/Boards actions;
  
• Providing information orally and in writing to city agencies, property owners, developers, community organizations, the Planning Commission and the general public;
  
• Interpreting and explaining legal, technical and procedural aspects of planning work to agencies and members of the public;
  
• Conducting site and field inspections and conducting surveys and interviews to obtain data;
  
• Preparing computer based and hard copy graphic materials;
  
• Designing and preparing graphic presentations to illustrate planning and development concepts;
  
• Conducting research studies and formulating recommendations to assist in planning policies;
• Providing zoning and permitting information to the general public, including shifts at the Planning Information Counter.

• Processing relevant planning applications and referrals, including: General Plan Referrals, Preliminary Project Assessments, and Community Plan Exemptions; and

Specific Tasks related to Transportation Policy Planning include:  assisting in development of long-range transportation policies and proposals, reviewing and analyzing transportation-related data, and assisting with transportation-related components of community planning work. Desired skills include strong understanding of transportation planning and design principles, including all travel modes, understanding of transportation demand management policy and best practices, ability to review and perform transportation analysis and modeling or simulation, and understanding of federal and state regulations and funding programs relating to transportation capital projects.

Incumbents in this job code may be required to attend evening and weekend meetings, occasionally held in community locations.

Minimum Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications:

1. Possession of a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university AND two (2) years (4,000 hours) verifiable full-time-equivalent experience in city, regional, urban or transportation planning, urban design, historic preservation, architectural or environmental review or other related field; OR
2. Possession of a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university in City, Regional, or Urban Planning, or a closely related field such as Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Geography, Urban Studies, Public Administration, Physical Sciences, Historic Preservation, or Environmental Studies AND one (1) year (2,000 hours) verifiable full-time-equivalent experience in city, regional, urban or transportation planning, urban design, historic preservation, architectural or environmental review or other related field; OR
3. Possession of a Master’s degree from an accredited college or university in City, Regional, or Urban Planning, or a closely related field such as Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Geography, Urban Studies, or Environmental Studies.

Desirable Qualifications:

The stated desirable qualifications may be used to identify job finalists at the end of the selection process when candidates are referred for hiring.

1. Knowledge, skills, or experience with urban planning, land use planning and transportation planning, including experience with integrated land use and transportation planning.
2. Strong written, oral, and graphical communication skills and the ability to interact effectively and maintain cooperative working relationship with peers, staff, outside agencies, and the community.
3. Strong interpersonal skills, professionalism, and responsibility and the ability to work collegially on team projects
4. Ability to effectively handle multiple projects and demands within deadlines.