Tim Keane, Atlanta Planning Commissioner, Headed to a New City

Tim Keane, the Atlanta planning commissioner and one of the most ambitious voices for planning innovation in the country, is moving to a job in a new city according to reports on Tuesday.

Thomas Wheatley broke the news in an article for Axios Atlanta that credits Keane with co-creating an ambitious long-term vision for the city's future, calling for affordable housing, and testing neighborhoods' appetites for growth and density.

The link in the previous paragraph is for an article that explains Keane's work, along with Atlanta BeltLine inventor Ryan Gravel, on the Atlanta City Design plan. Planetizen shared news about Keane's involvement in the Atlanta City Design plan in May 2017 and September 2017. Much more Planetizen coverage of the resulting political and planning process for the Atlanta City Design plan can also be found in the Planetizen archive.

Among other notable planning achievements, Keane joined 2o other planning directors of U.S. cities to sign a "commitment to change" for the field on issues of racial equity and cultural diversity. Keane has also provided a leading voice of opposition to controversial proposals in the city in recent months, including an audit that called for the police to conduct zoning and code enforcement and a plan for the affluent neighborhood of Buckhead to secede from the city of Atlanta, the latter in part due to the upzoning proposed by the Atlanta City Design plan.

The news of Kean's departure comes in the early days of a new mayoral administration in Atlanta. 

An archive of all Tim Keane coverage is also available on Planetizen.