Principal Planner - Transportation & Mobility

Carlsbad - The Community: The City of Carlsbad is ideally situated in north San Diego County where a great climate, beautiful beaches and lagoons, and abundant natural open space combine with world-class resorts, family attractions, well planned neighborhoods, excellent schools, and a charming village atmosphere to create the ideal California experience. Covering nearly 40 square miles, the City of Carlsbad is currently home to about 115,000 residents. The city sets the standard for high-quality local government services and is home to corporate headquarters in technology, life sciences and action sports, supported by a thriving tourism market and nearly 40 percent preserved open space. Thanks to an award-winning growth management plan, the city's infrastructure and services keep pace with development and promote an excellent quality of life.

The Branch: The Public Works Branch is responsible for planning, providing and maintaining infrastructure that supports Carlsbad's excellent quality of life. The branch includes a variety of departments including Environmental Sustainability, Fleet & Facilities, Construction Management & Inspection, Transportation and Utilities. More than 195 full-time equivalent staff support the branch, which also has an annual total budget of over $123 million, along with a total Capital Improvement Program (CIP) appropriation of over $110 million. These areas of services are often referred to as "Public Works". To learn more please visit: City of Carlsbad - Public Works Department

Basic Function: Under general direction, to assume supervisory responsibility for major transportation and mobility planning as assigned; to assist in the coordination of the daily departmental administrative activities and supervision of other professional and technical staff; to perform professional planning work; and to perform related responsibilities as required.

You belong in Carlsbad: The City of Carlsbad embraces and recognizes the vital relationship of an inclusive, engaged work environment and innovative excellence. An equitable and inclusive work climate comprises personal experiences, values, and views shaped from differences of culture and circumstance. Our organization appreciates belonging, creativity, recognition and retention of its employees and is committed to hiring and developing motivated, productive and talented employees who provide services and enhance our quality of life. We work to embrace open and equitable access to opportunities for learning and development as our responsibility and goal

Key responsibilities will vary depending on assignment. Examples of duties may include:

Provide supervision and guidance for other professional staff and participate in the conduct of complex studies relating to the social, economic and physical development of the community.

Develop and implement work plans for complex projects and programs.

Assist in coordinating a program of staff assistance to the City Council, Traffic Safety & Mobility Commission and other commissions and committees in planning matters, including the preparation of reports and recommendations.

Assist in developing policies, rules and procedures for the effective operation of the department, including establishing goals and objectives and priorities.

Coordinate routine departmental purchasing, personnel, budget and related administrative activities.

Make oral presentations concerning transportation and mobility programs and development projects to Traffic Safety & Mobility Commissions and to the City Council and other boards and commissions as required.

Make authoritative interpretations of applicable regulations and policies. Respond to difficult citizen complaints and requests for information.

Represent the city at community or professional meetings; make presentations as required.

Meet with developers, architects, engineers and others involved in privately sponsored residential, commercial and industrial projects; assist in the review and evaluation of project plans for conformance to established land use regulations, codes and policies.

Assign work to subordinate personnel, providing instructions and answering questions: coordinate the scheduling and completion of work by determining operational priorities and resolving workload problems; review work for accuracy and completeness: evaluate work techniques and methods for conformance to established standards.

Coordinate program activities with other city departments and divisions, and with outside agencies.

Perform other related duties as assigned.

To perform a job in this classification, an individual must be able to perform the essential duties as generally described in the specification. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential duties in a specific job. There requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill and/or ability required.

Depending on assignment:

• Principles and practices of transportation planning and mobility regulations, programming, public financing techniques, fiscal analysis, organization, administration and budget applicable to transportation and mobility planning.
• Applicable federal, state and local laws and regulations related to transportation planning and mobility.
• Local government financial practices, processes and procedures, including preparation of grant applications to compete for state, federal and local funding sources in support of transportation and mobility planning programs.
• Organization and functions of the various agencies involved in the planning process.
• Principles and practices of organization, administration, budgeting and supervision.
• Research methods and techniques and methods of report presentation.

• Plan, organize, coordinate and manage the city's transportation planning and mobility programs.
• Supervise, train and evaluate staff.
• Manage day-to-day operations of transportation and mobility planning activities.
• Communicate clearly and concisely, orally and in writing.
• Prepare and interpret ordinances and formulate transportation and mobility policies.
• Collect and analyze data and develop complex plans and reports.
• Develop and implement work plans for complex projects and programs.
• Establish and maintain cooperative relationships with city officials and employees, the public and representatives of other agencies.
• Properly interpret and make decisions in accordance with laws, regulations and policies.
• Analyze problems, identify alternative solutions, project consequences of proposed actions, and implement recommendations in support of goals.
• Exercise good judgment, flexibility, creativity, and sensitivity in response to changing situations and needs.
• Work well under pressure to meet deadlines.
• Respond to and resolve difficult and sensitive inquiries and complaints.
• Perform other related duties as assigned.

Any combination equivalent to the experience and education that could likely provide the required knowledge and abilities is qualifying. A typical way to obtain the knowledge and abilities would be:

Equivalent to a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university with major work in planning, public administration, community development urban design, transportation design or related field, and

Seven years of increasingly responsible professional transportation, urban and regional planning, redevelopment or housing experience with three years of experience in a supervisory role.

A master's degree in planning, public administration, business administration or related field is desirable.

Possession of a valid California Driver's License

While performing the duties of this class, an employee is regularly required to sit; talk or hear, in person and by telephone; use hands to finger, handle, feel or operate standard office equipment; and reach with hands and arms. An employee is frequently required to walk and stand. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision and the ability to adjust focus to read and operate office equipment as necessary during the course of the work assignments.

While performing the duties, employees of this class are regularly required to use written and oral communication skills; read and interpret financial and statistical data, information and documents; analyze and solve problems; use math and apply mathematical reasoning and abstract statistical concepts; observe and interpret people and situations; learn and apply new information or skills; perform highly detailed work on multiple, concurrent tasks; work under intensive deadlines; and interact with staff, Council members and others encountered in the course of work.

The employee works under typical office conditions, and the noise level is usually quiet. Employees may be required to travel to work sites or other sites for meetings. Employees frequently travel to undeveloped areas of the city for field visits. Field sites may include construction sites, steep terrains, agricultural areas, and habitats of native flora and fauna, insects, native animals and endangered species.