Senior Planner

TARGET CLOSE DATE:

09/26/2025

PAY GRADE:

Grade 26

TYPE:

Full time

JOB SUMMARY:

The City of Birmingham is seeking a well-qualified and motivated Senior Planner to join their Long Range Planning Division. Senior Planners review submission documents, such as drawings, maps, surveys, and applications, related to development projects in order to ensure compliance with City and department requirements and ordinances. Individuals in this job class also act as liaisons for the department to various committees, commissions, and citizens to communicate activities taking place, and to provide information related to project development within the community. Their work is performed under the general direction of a supervisor and is reviewed for completeness and adherence to policies and procedures.

COMPENSATION & BENEFITS:

The City of Birmingham provides competitive pay and comprehensive benefits
packages to include medical and dental insurance, employer-sponsored retirement plan
(pension), generous paid holidays, sick and vacation leave, and more. The pay range for this
job is presented below:

City of Birmingham: $60,486 - $93,828

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

The following are job-related qualifications that are required for employment consideration for this position:

Option A:

• Driver's license.

• Experience writing, developing, or preparing long-range planning elements, such as land-use planning, environmental planning, transportation planning, economic development, and demographics.

• Experience collecting and analyzing data (e.g., demographic, land-use survey, market, census) in preparation for a planning study.

• Experience writing, developing, preparing, and interpreting current planning functions including comprehensive plans or development regulations, such as zoning and subdivision regulations.

• Experience implementing long-range and short-range plans and developing appropriate regulations to specific situations.

• Experience developing and delivering presentations to the public, public bodies, and other stakeholders (e.g., civic and business organizations, neighborhood associations, public hearings).

Option B:

• Driver's license.

• Bachelor's degree in Planning, Urban Planning, Transportation Planning, Urban Studies, Public Administration, Environmental Management, or a related degree.

• Experience writing, developing, or preparing long-range planning elements, such as land-use planning, environmental planning, transportation planning, economic development, and demographics.

• Experience developing and delivering presentations to the public, public bodies and other stakeholders (e.g., civic and business organizations, neighborhood associations, public hearings).

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

The following are job-related qualifications deemed desirable by the City of Birmingham's Long Range Planning division. These qualifications may be considered by the hiring agency when reviewing applications and inviting candidates to participate in subsequent steps in the selection processes.

• AICP Certified.

• Experience writing grants to fund public programs or projects.

• Skill in GIS and experience in reading and interpreting site plans and topographic maps.

TYPICAL JOB DUTIES:

• Reviews drawings, maps, surveys, and applications for various purposes (e.g., zoning, subdivisions, building, addressing, construction permits) to ensure compliance with departmental requirements and County/City codes and ordinances.

• Communicates with various individuals (e.g., contractors, realtors, engineers, developers, general public) in order to answer questions and explain ordinances relating to flood plain, zoning, signage, subdivision, future land use, and the comprehension plan.

• Processes cases or projects (e.g., re-zoning cases, subdivision cases, variances) by conducting research, analysis, and findings of cases in order to ensure accuracy and adherence to best planning practices.

• Acts as a staff liaison to various committees/commissions (e.g., Planning and Zoning Commission, Zoning Board of Adjustment, Subdivision Committee, Zoning Advisory Committee, Historic Preservation, Planning and Zoning, Design Review Board, Board of Landscape Design) in order to gather feedback, relay information and deliver presentations.

• Participates in strategic, current, and long-range planning and ordinance revisions by conducting research and analyzing various data (e.g., demographic reports, neighborhood revitalization plans) to ensure compliance with federal and state regulations.

• Manages federal and state project-based grants to include defining and managing the project scope and deliverables, troubleshooting problem areas, and overseeing project budgets, timelines and contingency plans.

• Manages hazard mitigation and/or disaster recovery programs and watershed and/or floodplain planning programs by developing management plans, protocols, and procedures to ensure compliance with state and federal regulations and requirements.

• Researches other adopted city or county long-range plans to ensure the site development plans/projects are consistent with the stated goals of the long-range plan.

• Reviews site and development plans for adherence to development regulations required through the Zoning Ordinance and, when appropriate, approves them.

• Conducts or participates in neighborhood or public involvement meetings to inform citizens about projects in their community and to obtain feedback.

• Interprets codes and ordinances to ensure compliance with applicable federal regulations and programs.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

Job is primarily sedentary involving sitting for long periods of time, but may involve occasional walking or standing for brief periods. May involve occasional light lifting of items or objects weighing up to 25 lbs.

WORK ENVIRONMENT:

Work is conducted mostly indoors in an office setting, with periodic field visits to external indoor or outdoor locations. Work involves use of standard office equipment, such as computer, phone, copier, etc.

EEO STATEMENT:

The Personnel Board of Jefferson County provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment with the Personnel Board of Jefferson County, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.  Each Merit System member city/agency operate its own equal employment opportunity policies available on the individual city/agency website.

ACCOMMODATION:

NOTE:

This job posting may close before, or be extended beyond, the listed Target Close Date based on the employment needs of the Merit System. More detail regarding this job is available by clicking Apply.

DISCLAIMER:

This job posting is not meant to be an all-inclusive list of the job duties, responsibilities, or skills and abilities required to do the job and may be changed at the discretion of the Personnel Board at any time.