City Planner

The City of Golden is hiring a City Planner for a full-time position with a salary range of $67,234 to $80,680 annually. The role involves community planning, development review, and public engagement. Ideal candidates should have experience in zoning codes, conflict resolution, and effective communication. Benefits include paid time off, retirement matching, and tuition reimbursement. The position offers flexible/hybrid remote work options.
Salary: $67,234.00 - $80,680.00 Annually
Location : Golden, CO
Job Type: Full-Time
Remote Employment: Flexible/Hybrid
Job Number: 2025-00048
Department: Community and Economic Development
Opening Date: 03/14/2025
Closing Date: Continuous
FLSA: Exempt

We are currently recruiting qualified applicants for City Planner.Come see why the City of Golden is the place you want to be!

Why work at the City of Golden?
Being a Golden employee is more than just a job, it's a lifestyle. Golden is a vibrant outdoor community making it a great place to live, work and play.
• Location, location, location- Work near great restaurants and shops, hit the trails, and enjoy the outdoor scenery of Clear Creek and the foothills. Convenient commuting from all directions.
• Paid time off- Paid vacation starts at 16 days (that's over 3 weeks!), plus 12 days of sick time and 12 paid holidays each year.
• Great benefits- The City matches up to 8% of your retirement contributions, plus offers a full-spectrum of benefits and perks, including tuition reimbursement ()!
Provides expert services to the city with a combined focus on current and long-range community planning, including development review, preparation of staff reports, drafting and implementing the Comprehensive Plan update, development of a transportation demand management program and oversight of a docked micromobility feasibility study contract. Under the direction of the Principal Planner, conduct data collection and analysis, mapping and graphic preparation, prepare land use related recommendations for zoning administration (e.g. boards and commission, building permit review, City Council), robust public engagement and policy and program development. This work will allow the incumbent to engage a myriad of urban planning skills on topics ranging from development review to transportation to land use and sustainability.

The ideal candidate will possess the following characteristics:
• Experience working with the public, especially relating to community planning processes, and digesting a diverse array of input into long range plans and strategies.
• Possess a "thick skin" and the ability to handle conflict and controversial situations in a calm and objective manner.
• Capable of interpreting zoning codes, engineering plans, site plans and architectural drawings and communicating analysis through concise writing, graphics and illustrations in formal staff reports.
• Experience with form-based zoning codes and the ability to formulate recommended changes to meet the goals of the community as it relates to development outcomes.
• Organized, energetic, collaborative, and enthusiastic about helping the community discover and achieve its goals.
• Comfortable speaking in formal public meetings, as well as the ability to connect with small groups and individuals and understand their concerns.
• Ability to see the big picture and generate creative ideas and approaches, as well as focus in on details such as policy implementation and legal documents.
• Ability to thrive and engage in a team-based culture.
Applicants not fully qualified for the City Planner (Planner II) position may be considered as a Planner I candidate, dependent upon qualifications and experience. The Planner I hiring range is $61,122 - $73,346.
JOB SUMMARY
• Assist Principal Planner on long range community planning initiatives with experience in maps and graphics, public engagement and creating actionable outcomes.
• Lead development of the City's transportation demand management program in partnership with internal and external stakeholders.
• Conduct oversight and management of a docked micromobility feasibility study and develop implementation recommendations should the City choose to proceed with a formal program.
• Supervise and/or participate in land use development review including pre-application meetings, neighborhood meetings, application assessments, case preparations, referral distribution and legal notices.
• Represent the City by presenting staff recommendations to Planning Commission, Historic Preservation Board and City Council.
• Supervise and/or participate in administration of applications including final preparation for recording, draft and approve ordinances and zoning map changes for annexations and rezonings.
• Lead special projects concerning infrastructure and facility planning, historic preservation, process improvements, grant administration, housing and public engagement and education.
• Build strong working partnerships with City departments, consultants, board and commission members, external partners and agencies and the Golden community to implement plans and projects.
• Support diverse public engagement processes including large group presentations and public speaking, small group facilitation, seasonal community events and overall input monitoring and documentation. This includes occasional night and weekend meetings, approximately 1-2 per month.
• Other duties as assigned.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES
May supervise interns that assist with projects for a short-term period.
QUALIFICATIONS
BA/BS in City or Regional Planning, Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Public Affairs/Administration, Communications or closely related field. Master's degree in City or Regional Planning preferred. Minimum two years' professional related community planning experience. Proficient in MS Office products. Must possess excellent customer service and interpersonal skills.

CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS
Must possess a valid driver's license and a good driving record.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required.
LANGUAGE SKILLS
Ability to read, analyze, and interpret common scientific and technical journals, financial reports, and legal documents. Ability to respond to common inquiries or complaints from customers, regulatory agencies, or members of the business community. Ability to write speeches and articles for publication that conform to prescribed style and format. Ability to effectively present information to top management, public groups, and/or boards of directors.
MATHEMATICAL SKILLS
Ability to calculate figures and amounts such as discounts, interest, commissions, proportions, percentages, area, circumference, and volume. Ability to apply concepts of basic algebra and geometry.
REASONING ABILITY
Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization exists. Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form.
OTHER SKILLS AND ABILITIES
Ability to effectively communicate in writing and verbally. Ability to work with people in difficult situations. Must exhibit an extremely high degree of independent action working with department heads, appointed boards and commissions, citizens, developers, as well as City Manager and City Council. Ability to work effectively with the public works department and other related departments.
MATERIALS & EQUIPMENT DIRECTLY USED
Basic office equipment including but not limited to telephone, copier, computer, printer, camera, AV equipment, plotter, fax machine, and SMART technology.
PHYSICAL DEMANDS
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to use hands to hold, handle, or feel and talk or hear. The employee frequently is required to sit and reach with hands and arms. The employee is occasionally required to stand; walk; climb or balance; and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl. The employee must regularly lift and/or move up to 10 pounds, frequently lift and/or move up to 25 pounds, and occasionally lift and/or move up to 100 pounds.
WORK ENVIRONMENT
The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job.
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally exposed to outside weather conditions. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

City of Golden is an Equal Opportunity Employer
Regular Full-Time (RFT) employees of the City of Golden currently receive numerous benefits as part of their total compensation package. These benefits are in addition to mandated benefits such as: workers' compensation, unemployment insurance, and social security. Some benefits are provided at no cost to the employee while others require employee cost sharing or contributions. Employees are eligible to enroll in most benefits upon hire.

The City of Golden's benefit package can comprise an average of 35% of total compensation.

Employer Paid Benefits Include:
Term Life Insurance
Short Term Disability
Long Term Disability
Employee Assistance Program

Cost Sharing Benefits Include:
Medical Coverage
Dental Coverage
401(a) Retirement Plan

Full-time employees can also take advantage of:
Wellness Benefits
Flexible Spending Account
Dependent Care Account
457 Deferred Compensation Plan
Vision Coverage
Tuition Program
Supplemental Life Insurance

Full-Time employees receive the following leave options:
128 Hours of Annual Leave (accrued each pay period)
96 Hours of Sick Leave (accrued each pay period)
12 Paid Company Holidays

For more detailed information please refer to the section of our website.
01

The hiring range for this position is $67,234 - $80,680, depending on skills and experience. Are you comfortable with this range of pay?
• Yes
• No

02

Please select your highest level of education completed.
• Bachelor's Degree in City or Regional Planning
• Bachelor's Degree in Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Public Affairs/Administration, Communications, or closely related field
• Bachelor's Degree in unrelated field
• Master's Degree in City or Regional Planning
• Master's Degree in Architecture or Landscape Architecture or closely related field
• Master's Degree in unrelated field
• None of the Above

03

Please select your total experience in professional community planning.
• 1 year or less
• 2 years or more
• No experience

04

Do you possess a valid driver's license with a good driving record? A good driving record includes, but is not limited to, no suspension or revocation of license within the last three years and no conviction of a DUI, DUID, DWAI or any hit and run accident within the past two years.
• Yes
• No

05

City planning involves a wide array of issues and tasks, and very few have mastered all of the skills involved. Please review the list of skills, below, and select all those in which you are proficient.
• Interpreting and creating form-based code regulations
• Site plan review, staff report, and presentation
• Plat/subdivision review
• Variance cases
• Special use permits
• Grading plan review
• Landscape plan review
• Historic architecture review
• Rezoning cases
• Traffic study review
• Urban renewal districts and TIF
• Economic development issues
• Presenting to boards/commissions, City Council, and members of the public
• Leading community engagement meetings and exercises
• Creating policy documents such as neighborhood plans and transportation plans
• Sketch up
• GIS/Arc map
• Adobe Photoshop
• Adobe Indesign
• Bluebeam or Adobe Pro for review comments
• Accela or other permit software
• Written communication
• Oral communication

06

Are there any other relevant skills you would like to share?
07

Community Planning in Golden involves much public discussion and communication with a highly engaged and opinionated community. How comfortable do you feel making public presentations and engaging in dialogue with people holding diverse perspectives?
• Very comfortable
• Fairly comfortable
• Somewhat uncomfortable
• Terrified

08

This position may require your attendance at meetings, possibly up to four times per month, outside of regular business hours, during the evenings or on weekends. Are you willing to work this type of schedule?
• Yes
• No

09

In 75 words or less, please describe your perception of planning in Golden.
Required Question