Job Posting - Director of Planning and Sustainability

Director of Planning and Sustainability

Organization: City of Franklin, Tennessee
Salary: Open DOQ
Close Date: Please submit your cover letter and detailed resume with current salary by April 8, 2016.

Job Description:

Franklin covers 41 square miles and is located 15 miles south of Nashville. It is the county seat of Williamson County and plays a prominent role in the thriving economy of the Nashville region.

Franklin is one of the wealthiest cities in one of the wealthiest counties in the United States. The City offers a unique blend of history and progress providing the best of small-town charm and big-city sophistication. It has a well-deserved national reputation for its safe, clean and attractive residential neighborhoods, an award-winning downtown, and a vibrant corporate headquarters area.

The City is rapidly growing. U. S. census figures document that Franklin is the 14th most rapidly growing city in the country with a population of at least 50,000. Since 1980 its population has increased more than fivefold and, based on the current estimated population of 70,000, it is ranked as the seventh-largest city in Tennessee. The population is projected to be 114,000 by 2030. The City has become a primary location for Class A office space in the region with more Class A space in Franklin than in Nashville. The current Class A office space vacancy rate is only 2%.

The American Planning Association named downtown Franklin as a Top 10 Great Neighborhood because of “Downtown Franklin’s outstanding historic character and architecture and meaningful protection measures that the City has adopted to ensure Franklin’s unique sense of place is not compromised by future growth and development” The National Trust for Historic Preservation recognized Franklin for “offering an authentic visitor experience by combining dynamic downtowns, cultural diversity, attractive architecture and a strong commitment to historic preservation.”

Franklin functions under a Council/Manager form of government. There are eight members of the Board of Mayor and Aldermen. Four aldermen are elected from the City’s four political divisions called wards; four are elected at-large. This Board is responsible for setting City's policies and passing resolutions, ordinances and the municipal code, all of which are implemented by the various City departments. The City Administrator is appointed by the Board and is responsible for carrying out the policies and programs approved by the Board.

Franklin’s Planning and Sustainability Department (P&SD) is one of the most progressive in the state and region. The success of the City is anchored in its firm belief that there is a public/private partnership with the development community. The P&SD has a staff of fourteen, eleven of whom are planners and land planners, and three support staff. P&SD has two divisions: Long Range Planning and Current Planning.

The Franklin Land Use Plan is the genesis of the planning process. The P&SD is responsible for overseeing and making recommendations through this process from the time an annexation is requested, through approval of the last site plan, and then for inspecting vegetation until release of the performance bonds has been accomplished. The P&SD is also responsible for the other implementation tools of the planning trade: the Franklin Zoning Ordinance, the Subdivision Regulations, and the Historic District Guidelines.

The required knowledge, skill and abilities to satisfactorily perform job duties are normally acquired through attainment of a Master's degree in urban planning plus eight to ten years related experience and/or training; or an equivalent combination of education and experience. The ideal candidate will hold AICP certification (preferred) and will have a clear and passionate commitment to Franklin’s historic, natural, and cultural resources and to the built environment that comprises the Franklin quality of life. He or she will be experienced in supervising creative and talented employees, have a proven commitment to sound and proactive planning approaches, have a track record of striving for constant improvement of the built environment and conserving natural and historic resources; have experience in long range, current, and historic district planning and have the proven ability to implement the goals and innovative planning techniques in a fast-growing and progressive community.

The compensation level is open depending on the qualifications of the selected candidate. City policy is to compensate employees at a level comparable to the top 30% of bench mark jurisdictions.

Please submit your cover letter and detailed resume with current salary by April 8, 2016 to Robert E. Slavin or David Krings at SLAVIN MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS; 3040 Holcomb Bridge Road, Suite A-1; Norcross, Georgia 30071; Phone: (770) 449-4656; Fax: (770) 416-0848; e-mail: slavin@bellsouth.net. A comprehensive recruitment profile is available at www.slavinweb.com. Electronic submissions are preferred.

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