Youngstown Seeks to Fill Chief Planner Position
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The city of Youngstown is advertising to hire a chief planner.
Applicants must apply by 4 p.m. Aug. 31 to be considered for the position, according to a Friday afternoon news release from Nikki Posterli, chief of staff to Mayor Jamael Tito Brown and director of community planning and economic development.
The announcement follows last week’s hiring of Stephanie Gilchrist as director of economic development.
Hunter Morrison, a senior fellow in urban studies at the Levin College of Cleveland State University and former director of the Center for Urban and Regional Studies at Youngstown State University, has served as a planning consultant for the city on a contract basis since August 2019.
Morrison’s current contract expires at the end of this year, he said. When he came on, he and city officials discussed eventually bringing on a younger planner who he would mentor.
“That has always been the plan,” he said. “It just took longer than we expected. COVID didn’t help.”
The chief planner oversees and supervises the planning division of the community planning and economic development department under Posterli. The planner will be responsible for administering the city’s planning functions and managing its redevelopment code, as well as regional and local planning initiatives, according to the news release.
The person filling that role also participates in planning activities involving city departments, public agencies, private partners and stakeholders who are engaged in the development of business growth, quality of life for residents and the city’s neighborhoods.
“The ideal candidate will have thorough knowledge of planning and zoning principles and practices, local government policies and procedures; thorough knowledge of specializations such as urban design, historic preservation, community and quality of life conditions, and neighborhood development,” according to the release.
More information on the position and the application process can be found HERE.
Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
