Planner III - Position #10372

The Prince George’s County Planning Department of The Maryland National-Capital Park and Planning Commission is seeking a Planner III to join our planning team. The Department provides land use planning for the physical development of Prince George’s County, Maryland. As the second most populous county in Maryland, Prince George’s has a population of approximately 900,000 residents and is home to The University of Maryland at College Park, WMATA Headquarters, UMD Capital Region Medical Center, U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Internal Revenue Service (IRS), NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, and Joint Base Andrews Air Force Base. Prince George’s County is also home to many attractions such as FedEx Field, National Harbor, and Six Flags Amusement Park. If you are interested in working for the Prince George’s County Planning Department, we invite qualified candidates to apply for our Planner III position.

Examples of Important Duties

Under direction, the selected candidate will perform a wide variety of advanced and complex professional planning work requiring a high level of responsibility and technical expertise to review proposed land use, development, redevelopment, and transit-oriented development. Work assignments include the coordination and review of multi-faceted projects that typically involve coordination with other department staff, county agencies, and citizens. Incumbents in this class are regularly assigned project leadership and coordination responsibilities as well as independent work assignments and contribute their expertise as part of other project or work teams. Performs administrative work directly related to case assignments. Performs other related duties as assigned. Must be able to take direction in a high paced department and meet and track critical deadlines. Must have excellent writing skills with the ability to explain complex issues in a concise and direct manner to individuals and to the County Planning Board, District Council and Zoning Hearing Examiner at a public hearing.
 
WHAT YOU SHOULD BRING:
The ideal Planner III candidate will be highly organized, have strong analytical skills, possess outstanding communication and leadership skills, and provide a directly related innovative approach to planning. In addition, they must be independently engaged in the work program and highly dependable.

Minimum Qualifications

 

1. Bachelor’s Degree in Planning, Geography, Architecture, Parks and Recreation, Transportation, Urban Design, Engineering, Environmental Science, Public Policy, Economics or any related field. 
2. Four (4) years of progressively responsible professional level planning experience related to specific area of assignment such as transportation planning, environmental planning or urban planning.
3. An equivalent combination of education and experience may be substituted, which together total eight (8) years.
4. Valid driver’s license (depending on area of assignment) in accordance with both State and Commission rules and regulations.  Driver’s license must be unencumbered by restrictions, revocations, suspensions, or points that could limit the employee’s ability to drive Commission vehicles or perform driving duties required by the position of assignment.

 

Supplemental Information

The individual in this position should be a planner with Zoning and/or land use experience capable of reviewing and analyzing development proposals, managing ongoing processes related to the assigned cases including variances, and serving as a mid-level specialist in Zoning analysis. Primary duty will be the review of applications for conformance to the County Code including Zoning and Subdivision regulations. This includes coordinating a Departmental recommendation on each application and various inquiries. The workload will include all types of applications, such as rezoning cases, special exceptions, departures, certified nonconforming uses, subdivisions, as well as providing zoning expertise to planning teams.

The candidate must have very good plan review skills including engineered site plans. In addition, the candidate should have an understanding of basic land use law. Other duties may include participation in master plans or sector plans, working as part of an interdisciplinary project team. Requires negotiating solutions and making effective presentations on complex and controversial topics before public groups and in public hearings. Must possess strong oral, written, and visual communication skills; critical thinking skills; innovative problem-solving skills; and the ability to work well with people. Ability to express planning and design principles verbally, graphically and in writing is essential. Combined public/private experience is preferred but not required.

The Prince George’s County Planning Department is currently located in historic Upper Marlboro, Maryland. Free onsite parking is available for employees. Person(s) hired for this position must provide proof of being fully vaccinated for COVID-19 (with limited religious or medical exceptions).

The M-NCPPC offers a competitive salary range of $65,328 to $117,831 at the Planner III level with an excellent benefits package including generous leave, extensive health coverage, deferred compensation plan, employer's retirement plan, and work-life programs. Salary is commensurate with education and experience. The Commission is an Equal Opportunity Employer and encourages applications from underrepresented groups, females, and persons with disabilities.