A city planner, sometimes known as an urban planner, develops and assesses projects for land, municipalities, community areas, and other urban locations. They evaluate inefficient and outdated facilities to maintain code enforcement and reconstruction. As public administrators, planners also research landscaping and zoning laws, draft legislation, coordinate milestones, and prepare for the future.
City planner is an excellent career for anyone interested in the environment and the betterment of society. An accomplished candidate can look for a range of opportunities in both the private and government sectors.
Roles and Responsibilities
City planners are assigned projects involving the development of land, buildings, communities, and more. They play a significant role in projects such as low-income housing and new parks. A city planner’s key responsibilities include:
- Gathering and analyzing data from market research, community consensus, and economic and environmental resources.
- Meeting and partnering with government, city, and public administration officials to plan building construction, land use, and growth within the community.
- Presenting development plans and projects to communities, as well as to planning officials and commissions.
- Investigating and evaluating proposed plans‘ feasibility to determine if changes are viable before finalizing those plans.
- Reviewing and implementing site plans and government policies that affect land use and zoning.
- Staying on point regarding zoning, environmental policies, construction and building codes, and all other additional compliances.
Whether working on short- or long-term projects, city planners focus on optimizing resources in ways that grow communities. They may write a motion for a city council meeting, collaborate with city managers, and be the public face of their projects. As spokespersons and mediators, city planners advocate for the modernization of physical facilities and promote actions that accommodate population growth.
City Planners may work on any of the following provided they have the appropriate experience, talent, and education. This gives city planners the option to specialize in a particular field.
Land Use
The land use development and planning process entails allocating resources that ensure land is facilitated to the best of its potential. Of utmost importance is the welfare of the residents in these areas. Urban planners are the bottom line for making sure industrial plans are eco-friendly, that air quality remains high, and that resources do not go to waste.
Transportation
With transportation projects, the planner monitors a region’s current state of transport resources with the intent of aligning them with legislation, modernization, and efficiency. These public administration professionals look at streets, roads, highways, public transit, bike lanes, walkways, and even cargo ships. Planners design with the future in mind, factoring in transportation requirements via sensible goals, budgets, and policies.
Environmental Sustainability
Sustainability and eco-friendliness has become a core focus of urban planning. Environmental sustainability encompasses strategies that identify and manage ecologically sound issues. It helps planners plot objectives, actions, and goals that reduce humankind’s negative impact on ecosystems.
Economic Development
An urban planner sets policy for economic growth through programs, meetings with regional officials, strategy identification, and more. The goal is to improve the economy in a designated region via business growth, accessible housing, and zoning. These plans can be influential in getting access to state, federal, and private aid.
Community Development
City planners use principles of empowerment, inclusivity, sustainability, human rights, equality, social justice, and participative democracy to address the gaps and challenges opposing a community. The process rallies for fairness, striving to promote the interests, heritage, identities, and culture of a unified community.
Pay and Notoriety
According to Zippia, a city planner makes between $40,000 and $142,000 a year (data as of October 2023). Across the U.S., city planner’s average $76,188 in annual salary.
As in any profession, several factors impact what to expect in a salary. There’s location, experience, sector, history, and performance. The highest wages in this field come out of Washington, California, and Oregon. In the U.S., the highest-paid planners are in the tech industry.
How to Become a City Planner
Potential employers are looking for candidates with a graduate-level background. They’re also impressed by multidimensional points of view, since the planner’s decisions impact environmental, social, and economic stability. For example, the planner’s decisions can improve or impede the best routes to schools or a new community center.
Your education should also emphasize interpersonal skills, leadership, geography, political science, architecture, and engineering. While education requirements can vary based on the region and position, the Bureau of Labor Statistics lists the following as core requirements for city planners.
Obtain a Relevant Bachelor’s Degree
While some positions may only need a B.A., you have a chance at a better position if you hold a Master’s. It will also impress if you have an urban and regional planning accredited program under your belt.
Gain Relevant Experience and Internships
An internship will be invaluable. A candidate can only improve their eligibility if they bring 1–2 years of related experience to the table. It’s the perfect opportunity to interact with local legislators, laws, urban projects, and other functions. You’ll develop communication skills through tasks like knowing how to run a city council meeting. You’ll also learn details like the difference between a city manager vs. mayor.
Seek a Professional Certification
A crucial step in becoming an urban planner is obtaining your certification. To do so, you must take an exam and, via continued education, maintain those credentials. For a better grasp of the certification process, check out AICP.
Build a Strong Portfolio
Your cover letter, resume, and portfolio should tell a story. Hiring managers have to see your thought processing, creativity, ability to communicate, and more before offering you the job. Go digital so you can share all types of media that highlight your potential. Refresh it regularly so your materials stay up to date.
Getting Started With eScribe
Urban planners and other government officials all become more efficient with the right government meeting software. eScribe’s end-to-end platform packs powerful tools that streamline everything from managing virtual city council meetings to tracking goals and objectives, all at pricing that works for local governments.
By automating administrative work and opening communication channels, eScribe helps governments engage citizens in a more timely and transparent way:
- Meeting Manager: Manage hundreds of meetings at a time. eScribe centralizes everything in one place, eliminating busywork and replacing paper with digital documents.
- Meeting Minutes: Capture and record meeting minutes, votes, and other vital meeting information in real time.
- Reporting and Workflows: Know the status of everything by managing deadlines, tracking statuses, and handling reports and approvals from a central platform.
- Collaboration Tools: Give everyone everything they need for an efficient, productive meeting, no matter where they are. Follow up immediately with post-meeting action items.
See these tools in action in the story of the City of Greensboro, North Carolina, who used eScribe to create a more inclusive future for its nearly 300,000 residents.