The City of Beverly Hills has a long-standing reputation for providing superior customer service to residents, businesses, and visitors. This characteristic, combined with outstanding staff in all departments, has been a hallmark of success for this high-performance organization. The municipal government (approximately 1,000+ full-time and part-time employees) provides the highest quality safety services, recreational, municipal services, and physical environment.

What We Do

The Community Development Department guides the planning, development, and preservation of the City of Beverly Hills. The department is composed of six divisions (Administration, Community Preservation, Community Filming and Event Permits, Development Services, Planning, and Rent Stabilization) and provides staff support to three commissions (Architectural and Design Review, Cultural Heritage, and Planning). Community Development is responsible for the review and processing of all private development projects to ensure compliance with the General Plan, Zoning Ordinance, and Building Code including planning entitlements, zoning and plan review, permits, and inspections. The department preserves the community's character and high quality of life through the code enforcement and historic preservation programs and administration of the Rent Stabilization Ordinance.

Who We're Looking For

The Associate Planner is a journey level professional position who performs current planning activities, which involves reviewing and analyzing development projects for consistency with the City's Municipal Code, State laws, and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), as well as providing zoning information and minor project reviews at the City's public counter. As a journey-level professional in the Planner Series, incumbents receive supervision and training on new aspects of assignments and work is reviewed in progress and upon completion. Associate Planners have acquired the skills and experience to perform planning duties of moderate difficulty and require less supervision. We are looking for a forward thinking, hands-on, detail-oriented individual, with superior written/oral communication and customer services skills, and a desire to build positive relationships within the overall community and colleagues. The ideal candidate will possess a high degree of professionalism and exhibit proactive planning and project management skills, and interest in various initiatives for the City.

Detailed Job Description:

Associate Planner Job Description

Major Duties

Associate Planners are journey level professionals, performing current, advance planning and environmental analysis implementing the Municipal Code, Local guidelines, and State Law. This is the second working level in the Planner series. Associate Planners have acquired the skills and experience to perform planning duties of moderate difficulty and require less supervision.

Some of the core duties include, but are not limited to:

Current Planning:

• Checks simple and complex commercial, industrial, and residential development plans and provides advice regarding zone requirements at the public counter and on the telephone.
• Reviews more complex zoning, variance, permit applications and development proposals for compliance with city codes; works with developers to bring any plans into compliance with zoning and all other laws.
• Confers with and advises architects, builders, attorneys, contractors, engineers, and the general public regarding City development policies and standards.
• Processes permits for planning applications (variances, conditional use permits, re-zoning requests, etc.) including issuance of public notice, preparation of staff reports, inspection of sites, and analysis and preparation of recommendations to the Planning Commission.
• Analyzes proposals for potential aesthetic and environmental impacts and compliance with appropriate regulations.
• Evaluates and prepares graphic displays and/or photographs of project sites.
• Prepares written and presents oral reports on projects to Planning Commission, Architectural Commission, Design Review Commission, and City Council.
• May assist secretary to relative Commissions and participates in meetings, assists chairperson, answers questions, record notes, and assists applicants in presenting their cases.
• Prepares agendas for meetings, staff reports, notices, and maintains files for all related assignments.

Advance Planning:

• Compiles information and makes recommendations on special studies and prepares planning reports.
• Prepares zoning code and General Plan amendment studies.
• Researches and drafts ordinances for review.
• Researches, analyzes, and interprets social, economic, population and land-use data and trends; prepares written reports on various planning matters and elements of the General Plan.
• Monitors projects in adjacent jurisdictions and provides updates to Planning Commission and City Council.

Environmental:

• Analyzes, develops and prepares studies regarding environmental impacts when required for compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

Other:

• May act as department liaison on interdepartmental projects such as technology, human resources and others.
• Develops budget recommendations.
• Prepares activity reports for City, county, and federal government as required for the federally sponsored Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program.
• Performs other related tasks as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

(These qualifications are typically required. An equivalent combination of education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities sufficient to satisfactorily perform the duties of the job may be substituted).

• Bachelor's degree from an accredited College or University in planning, architecture, economics, geography, public policy or related field.
• A Master's degree is desirable.
• Three or more years of progressively responsible current and/or advanced planning or community development experience.
• AICP is desirable.
• Six months of internship experience may be considered as part of work experience.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

Knowledge:

• Intermediate knowledge of principles and practices of urban planning, site planning, and architectural design.
• Intermediate knowledge of state zoning and planning laws and codes including CEQA, subdivision map act, and zoning laws.
• Intermediate knowledge of current literature, information sources, and research techniques in the field of urban planning.
• Intermediate knowledge of technical drawings, graphics, and computer generated visual materials.
• Intermediate knowledge of building and engineering practices.
• Intermediate knowledge of applicable environmental laws and regulations.

Skills:

• Skill in photography and graphics.
• Knowledge of principles of community development and ability to work closely with community groups.
• Ability to use or be trained to use several specialized planning tools, such as word processing, spreadsheet, GIS, PowerPoint and data base applications.
• Ability to seek and implement creative solutions to problems.
• Respect members of the public and to implement a high level of customer service to a diverse population.
• Ability to explain complex codes and procedures to public.
• Excellent communication skills (written and verbal).