Planning Director

About the Community: Chapel Hill, NC, is a multicultural university town with a population of almost 60,000 that frequently appears in national “best place to live” listings and was recently recognized as one of the best towns in the U.S. by the Guardian.  As home to the nation’s first public institution of higher learning and 2017 NCAA Men’s Basketball champions, Chapel Hill is a picturesque community of 21 square miles filled with trees, historic and mid-century architecture and a thriving downtown.

Chapel Hill is a recognized pioneer in education, research, and innovation. This is a place where ideas are born.  Chapel Hill is also home to brilliant minds, award-winning restaurants, innovative businesses, outstanding public schools, and a vibrant music and performing arts scene. Historic homes and modern condos coexist beautifully here, all connected by open spaces and free public transportation.

Located in the beautiful piedmont region of central North Carolina, Chapel Hill sits within a few hours of the coast and the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains and is less than a 30-minute drive from Research Triangle Park and the RDU International Airport. Our major employers are the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and UNC Health Care. These thriving institutions help account for a stable employment base that is consistently rated above state and national benchmarks. Our emerging entrepreneurial community is led by LaUNCh, an internationally recognized business accelerator program and collaborative venture of the Town, Orange County, and University.

We are home to a diverse, welcoming community in which 17% of our residents were born in countries outside the United States. Demographically, the racial composition of the town in the 2010 census was 73% white, 12% Asian, and 10% black.  About 6.4% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race. Chapel Hill has a relatively young population with a median age of 25.7 years old. Chapel Hill is considered North Carolina’s best-educated municipality, with 73% of adults possessing a bachelor’s degree or higher.

Chapel Hill offers a small-town culture with metropolitan amenities with a community that is home to a dynamic, multi-cultural arts scene, including many museums, music and performing arts venues, galleries, festivals, and athletic events. While passionate about the Tar Heels and Carolina Blue, Town residents are also green in terms of sustainability and community character. Our community enjoys pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods, greenways and trails, and more than 700 acres of parks and open space.

About the Organization: Operating under a Council-Manager form of government, our organization’s RESPECT values (Responsibility, Equity, Safety, Professionalism, Ethics, Communication, and Teamwork) are the basis for our choices. They are reflected in our behavior and decisions every day. They are our compass as we accomplish our mission and objectives. As a result, residents have consistently rated Chapel Hill as “high-performing” in biennial community surveys. Due to a solid economic base in and around Chapel Hill and careful management of resources, the Town of Chapel Hill has bond ratings of AAA and consistently wins awards for its annual budget and financial report.

Chapel Hill’s strategic focus for the future is guided by the community vision established in the Chapel Hill 2020 Comprehensive Plan and is incorporated into the organization’s departmental business plans.  There are exciting and challenging projects on the horizon for the next Director to lead.

More information about the Town, its mission and its core values of RESPECT can be found here

About The Position:  This position plays a key role in overseeing development projects through the coordination and administration of the Town’s land use, neighborhood and historic preservation, and transportation and connectivity policies and regulations. This is an advanced professional, administrative and leadership position. The Director reports to the Town Manager and works with the Office of Housing and Community to coordinate the Planning Department’s work with other initiatives in the Town. The position is responsible for leading and directing the Planning staff in coordination with other Town Departments. The Director appears before the Town Council, advisory boards and commissions, and public groups; represents the Manager’s interests and assists the Manager in carrying out directives and recommendations of the boards and commissions and the Council.

The Town hires with its core values in mind, seeking like-minded people to manage the present and craft the future of Chapel Hill. More information about the Town, its mission and core values of RESPECT can be found here.

The Successful Candidate: 

• builds partnerships with community, regional and inter-governmental stakeholder groups;
• embraces and enjoys engagement in the community to clearly and proactively communicate Town values and initiatives to stakeholders;
• excels at innovative problem solving, seeking win-win solutions while keeping strategic goals in mind;
• communicates well including one on one, in small groups, and public speaking to citizens, elected officials, community groups, and staff;
• has experience establishing budgets and business plans including developing, planning, organizing, and directing all of the staff and activities to meet the established goals;
• is knowledgeable about and will administer sound planning, land use management, and transportation planning programs for the Town;
• has an extensive track record of successfully building and collaborating with cross-functional teams, removing barriers and building bridges to achieve organizational goals;
• evaluates existing organizational, service and staffing structures and works with the planning team to maximize clear and coherent practices both internally and externally to meet the strategic objectives of the Town; and,
• is an empowering leader equally dedicated to maintaining a cohesive team throughout the department as well as the development of individual employees.