JOB DESCRIPTION

Teton County is a year-round resort community, located in the northwestern corner of Wyoming. It serves as the southern gateway to Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks and is home to three world class ski resorts. Approximately 97% of the land within the county is held in public ownership – National Park, National Elk Refuge, and National Forest.

PRINCIPAL LONG-RANGE PLANNER

The ideal candidate will have the experience necessary to take the lead on advancing the Teton County and Town of Jackson’s joint long-range planning efforts, including text amendments, rezonings, neighborhood planning and natural resource regulations. This supervisory position works closely with elected officials, internal and external stakeholders, governmental agencies, and the general public for the implementation of the County’s Comprehensive Plan.

SUMMARY: Performs complex, highly technical current and long-range planning tasks for the Planning and Building Services Department; provides technical and professional guidance and support to the Planning staff; assures projects are in compliance with County Comprehensive Plan and Land Development Regulations, policies and procedures, and coordinates with appropriate State and/or Federal agencies.

PRIMARY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Manages complex, specialized, and politically sensitive professional planning applications and activities; uses professional knowledge of planning and growth management theory, environmental protection, public policy, and land use law to complete and manage projects.

• Takes planning and development applications from pre-application conference to final action; reviews development applications for compliance with the Comprehensive Plan, Land Development Regulations, and other County requirements; meets with applicants; schedules hearings for applications; prepares staff reports; and provides technical and professional recommendations to Planning Commission and Board of County Commissioners.

• Researches and develops complex and politically sensitive amendments to the Comprehensive Plan and LDR; assures amendments recommended for approval comply with LDR standards and are consistent with goals and objectives of the Comprehensive Plan and with other policies of the County.

• Manages highly technical and complex planning projects, reviews documents for compliance with County standards and policies, schedules public hearings, and assures that applicants understand the review process. Completes special projects, including researching regulatory approaches by other communities, locating technical ordinance language, reviewing federal and state environmental impact statements.

• Plans, organizes, implements, and supervises assigned Current Planning activities and staff; trains and mentors staff to fulfill the requirements that meet the Planning and Building Services Standards and Teton County policies and procedures.

• Manages consultants, develops Requests for Proposals/Qualifications, coordinates consultant selection, oversees contracts and scopes of work, and responsible for administration of contract budgets.

• Supports the relationship between the Teton County staff and the general public by demonstrating courteous and cooperative behavior when interacting with visitors and County staff; maintains confidentiality of work-related issues and County information; performs other duties as required or assigned.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

Education and Experience:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Planning, Landscape Architecture, Architecture, or Public Administration, or related field

• Master’s Degree in related field preferred.

• 3+ years of experience managing community development and urban planning programs.