Planner IV (Development Review & Environmental Review) - Planning, Building and Code Enforcement Department

• Assisting and guiding land use and development to promote long-term goals and objectives that render safe, beneficial, and more sustainable communities 
• Providing orderly administration and compliance of building codes, as mandated by the various levels of government, to ensure the construction of buildings, homes, and structures meet intended life safety and structural requirements 
• Investigating and resolving citizen complaints of municipal code violations on private property in order to promote, maintain, and improve quality of life issues that better allow for safe and harmonious conditions in all neighborhoods

The Department is seeking applicants who are committed to understanding, executing, and improving the customer experience to best achieve the above goals and objectives. This includes providing excellent service and guidance to residents, property and business owners, developers, and other stakeholders throughout the planning, building, and code enforcement processes. Strong communication and interpersonal skills are essential, as the department values building positive relationships and fostering collaboration with other departments, agencies, and the community. Additionally, applicants who possess a strong knowledge of planning principles, building codes, and/or regulatory requirements will be highly valued, as they will play a key role in ensuring compliance and promoting healthy, safe, and sustainable development practices.

About the Division 

This City’s Planning Division provides oversight and assistance towards the City's growth and development in relation to regulations related to land use, zoning ordinances, development standards, neighborhood plans, and environmental impacts.

The Division is currently seeking applicants with strong project management and highly effective interpersonal and communication skills for a Planner IV (Supervising Planner) classification within the Development Review and Environmental Review teams. 

These are full-time positions, and each Planner IV would be responsible for supervising and mentoring a team of Planners (Planner I, II, or III) who conduct entitlement and/or environmental reviews of Planning Applications.  Planner IVs will predominantly supervise, review deliverables and projects, and provide support for a team of Planners. The Planner IV will also keep track and manage their staff caseload, make development review and environmental process improvements to streamline the permitting process, and manage individual projects during periods of transition or high case volumes.

The Planning Division is divided into the following four sections:

• Permit Center: The Permit Center is focused on plan check conformance, administrative-level staff reviews for development projects, front counter/public information, and zoning compliance.
• Development Review: The Development Review Team is responsible for entitlement processing associated with rezonings and development permits, historic preservation, and community engagement.
• Environmental Review: The Environmental Review Team fulfills requirements under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for assessing environmental impacts associated with both public and private projects, ensures mitigation compliance, and implements the Santa Clara Valley Habitat Conservation Plan. 
• Citywide Planning: The Citywide Planning Team focuses on long-range planning, General Plan updates and amendments, zoning and sign code amendments, preparation of Urban Village/area plans, station area planning, housing policy, data analysis/GIS, grant management, and community engagement.

The Department’s Planning Division ensures compliance with all the above-mentioned obligations by annually reviewing, analyzing, conducting, researching, processing, and issuing:

• 4,000 compliance review for building permits
• Over 150 commercial, industrial, and residential development permits
• Over 500 of environmental clearance reviews for public and private projects, including approximately 4 to 8 Environmental Impact Reports, 20 to 30 Negative Declarations/Mitigated Negative Declarations, and over 150 exemptions.
• Over 50 zoning changes
• Multiple General Plan Amendments, specific plans, and policies.
• Over 50 community meetings and workshops

The Development Review Team is responsible for reviewing and hearing Development Applications, including Site Development Permits, Special and Conditional Use Permits, Planned Development Rezoning, Tentative Maps, and various other entitlement documents, as well as Preliminary Application requests. 

The Development Review Planner IV would provide support and oversight to a team of Planners responsible for intake, review, coordination, responding to public comments, and preparing various comment letters, permits, and staff reports for projects. The Planner IV provides support and helps when issues or projects need to be escalated to additional teams and management levels. The duties will require close collaboration with other City departments, and creative analytical thinking to resolve complicated project issues through a deep understanding of various state and local laws, policies, and requirements. 

The Environmental Review Team is responsible for ensuring compliance with CEQA, NEPA, the Santa Clara Valley Habitat Conservation Plan, and City policies and regulations for the protection of the environment. The section manages environmental review for public and private projects. The Team also monitors conformance with mitigation measures after project approval, reviews applications for compliance with the Santa Clara Valley Habitat Conservation Plan and supports other sections of the Planning Department in the implementation and development of policies to protect the environment. 

The Planner IV position on the Environmental Review Team will supervise and support a team of Planners performing environmental review. The position will also manage process improvements to improve coordination between planners and environmental consultants, streamline review times, and better integrate the Environmental Review with the Development Review Teams during the review of private development applications.   

Salary range for this classification is:

• Planner IV: $144,777.36 - $176,314.32 annually

This salary ranges include an approximate five percent (5%) ongoing non-pensionable compensation. Actual salary shall be determined by the final candidates’ qualifications and experience.

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Supervises subordinate planning staff, including: prioritizing and assigning work, training, editing documents prepared by subordinate staff, and general review of work performed by the team under supervision, conducting performance evaluations, making hiring, termination and disciplinary recommendations.
• Mentor staff to prepare them for future promotional opportunities.
• Provides frontline supervision to a team of professional planners, planning technicians, and/or interns. Includes mentoring, staff development, training, and preparing performance evaluations.
• Contributes to the evaluation and determination of recommendations on privately or City-initiated General Plan, zoning, land use, subdivision, and other Planning applications based on applicable General Plan, Zoning Code, City Council policies, CEQA, the Housing Accountability Act, the Housing Crisis Act, and other relevant guidance documents.
• Contributes ideas and develops proposals to modify the Zoning Code, streamline processes, improve service delivery, etc.
• Uses performance data and project management skills to guide the work of the team
• Meets with applicants, community members, or other interested parties to problem-solve on issues associated with Planning applications, long-range plans and policies, and land use regulations.
• Reviews, edits, and writes reports to the Planning Commission, City Council, and other audiences.
• Makes presentations before the City Council, Planning Commission, Historic Landmarks Commission, neighborhood groups, and/or other agencies.
• Represents the City at public hearings, meetings, and/or conferences.
• Collaborates and coordinates with other City departments, government agencies, community groups, Native American Tribal Representatives, and other entities on matters relating to San José's Planning programs and compliance with CEQA and NEPA.
• Communicates clearly and demonstrates excellent customer service consistent with PBCE standards.

Experience: Five (5) years of professional planning experience that includes three (3) years journey-level experience.

Acceptable Substitutions: Master’s Degree or sixty (60) semester units of graduate course work from an accredited college or university in urban or regional planning, urban design, urban studies, architecture, landscape architecture, urban geography, or environmental studies or a closely related field can substitute for two (2) years of planning work experience at the City of San Jose's Planner II/ III level or equivalent.

Licensing Requirements: Possession of a valid driver's license may be required. AICP certification is desirable.

Form 700 requirement: This position requires a disclosure of outside investments, real property interest, income, and business positions. You must complete and file an “Assuming Office Form 700” with the City Clerk’s Office within the first 30 days of employment with the office.

• Job Expertise - demonstrates knowledge of and experience with applicable professional/technical principles and practices, Citywide and departmental procedures/policies and federal and state rules and regulations.
• Communication Skills - effectively conveys information and expresses thoughts and facts clearly, orally and in writing; demonstrates effective use of listening skills; displays openness to other people's ideas and thoughts.
• Creativity - addresses objectives and problems while questioning traditional assumptions/solutions in order to generate creative ideas and new ways of doing business; exhibits creativity and innovation when contributing to organizational and individual objectives; seeks out opportunities to improve, streamline, reinvent work processes.
• Multi-Tasking - can handle multiple projects and responsibilities simultaneously; has handled a wide variety of assignments in past and/or current position(s).
• Problem Solving - approaches a situation or problem by defining the problem or issue; determines the significance of problem(s); collects information; uses logic and intuition to arrive at decisions or solutions to problems that achieve the desired outcome.
• Teamwork & Interpersonal Skills - demonstrates a positive attitude and flexibility along with the ability to develop effective relationships with co-workers and supervisors by helping others accomplish tasks and using collaboration and conflict resolution skills.
• Leadership - leads by example; demonstrates high ethical standards; remains visible and approachable and interacts with others on a regular basis; promotes a cooperative work environment, allowing others to learn from mistakes; provides motivational supports and direction.
• Decision Making - identifies and understands issues, problems, and opportunities; uses effective approaches for choosing a course of action or developing appropriate solutions.
• Political Skills - in taking action, demonstrates an understanding and consideration of how it will impact stakeholders and affected areas in the organization.

Selection Process: 

The selection process will consist of an evaluation of the applicant's training and experience based on the application and responses to all the job specific questions. You must answer all questions to be considered or your application may be deemed incomplete and withheld from further consideration. Only those candidates whose backgrounds best match the position will be invited to proceed in the selection process. Additional phases of the selection process will consist of one or more interviews.

You will be prompted to answer the following job-specific questions during the online application process:

1. Please describe your professional planning experience in urban planning, project permitting (Development Review), Environmental Review (CEQA), and/or Citywide (Long Range) planning, and include at least two examples of major projects where you played an intricate role in the review or supervision of a project or consultant team. Detail the duration, outcome, number and roles of staff/consultants involved, and your specific role for these projects.
2. Please describe a recent experience when your leadership ability and creative thinking resolved a problem related to a planning project or issue. Use a specific example and provide details of the type of problem, your role and responsibilities, and the outcome. 
3. Describe your experience managing multiple complex projects and priorities, including an example of a time where you were responsible for multiple projects. Explain how you handled the situation, what tools you used, and the outcome(s).

You must answer all job-specific questions to be considered for this position. Submission of a resume is optional. However, submission of a resume in lieu of completing the education and work experience sections on the application and failing to answer all the questions will constitute an incomplete application and it will be withheld from further consideration.

If you have questions about the duties of these positions, the selection or hiring processes, please contact Jennifer Lam at [email protected].

Employment Eligibility:  Federal law requires all employees to provide verification of their eligibility to work in this country. Please be informed that the City of San Jose will NOT sponsor, represent or sign any documents related to visa applications/transfers for H1-B or any other type of visa which requires an employer application.  

You must answer all job-specific questions to be considered for this vacancy or your application will be deemed incomplete and withheld from further consideration. Applicants are expected to write their own essays/responses.  Please be advised that use of AI content in your responses may result in your removal from the hiring process.

Please note that applications are currently not accepted through CalOpps or any other third party job board application system. To apply, please visit https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/sanjoseca/jobs/5012555/planner-iv-development-review-environmental-review-planning-building-cod. 

This recruitment may be used to fill multiple positions in this, or other divisions or departments. If you are interested in employment in this classification, you should apply to ensure you are considered for additional opportunities that may utilize the applicants from this recruitment.

Please allow adequate time to complete the application and submit before the deadline or the system may not save your application.  If your online application was successfully submitted, you will receive an automatic confirmation email to the email address you provided.  IF YOU DO NOT RECEIVE THE CONFIRMATION, please email [email protected] and we will research the status of your application.