Senior Planner Salary $57,824.00 Annually Location City County Building, IN Job Type Full Time Job Number 09489 Department Department of Metropolitan Development Opening Date 11/19/2025 Closing Date 1/3/2026 11:59 PM Eastern Description Benefits Overview Position is responsible for supporting the Division of Planning with activities pertaining to zoning and other land use petitions. The position is also responsible for providing information and expertise to citizen decision-making bodies such as the Metropolitan Development Commission, Boards of Zoning Appeals, Plat Committee, Hearing Examiners and Hearing Officers.Agency Summary The purpose and mission of the Department of Metropolitan Development works to shape the city's identity by strengthening people and places, building upon our history, and fostering visionary development. The DMD envisions the city as a growing, vibrant, and beautiful city where people are businesses thrive in an inclusive, world-class community. The DMD is able to do this by cultivating a productive, collaborative, and compliant work environment in order for our workforce to meet the needs of the constituents of Indianapolis and Marion County. Equal Employment OpportunityThe City of Indianapolis Marion County is an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran, or disability status. We value diversity in perspectives and experiences among colleagues and the residents of this city of whom we serve. Position Responsibilities Key ResponsibilitiesDraft blurbs of filed requests for purposes of legal advertisement and mailed notification.Review legal notices for accuracy.Review petition file contents to ensure accuracy and completeness. (e.g. site plan, legal description, findings of facts, etc.)Conduct site visits to familiarize oneself with the subject site and vicinity, and document with photos.Present initial research to the rest of staff at weekly staff meeting.Research subject site, including but not limited to: location of request; nature of request; functionality of site plan; surrounding uses and zoning districts; sites land use history; permit and violation history; potential of site to comply with ordinance; impact of requests implementation on the Comprehensive Plan; and consideration of alternative solutions to eliminate need of variance, or reduce the impact of a land use petition.Contact petitioners for discussion of petition file contents, recommendations, and questions/issues, as needed.Communicate with interested parties; including neighbors, neighborhood organizations, remonstrators, and other city/county departments.Write staff reports.Present staff findings of the land use petition at public hearings of citizen decision-making bodies.Review disposition letters to ensure the contents reflect the decision of the appropriate board or commission.Provide planner-on-call services for up to two shifts per week.Answer zoning/petition questions via incoming telephone calls and walk-ins a the front counter.Answer questions from the Department of Business & Neighborhood Services and other City departments.Present requests for formal inquiries on zoning matters at the weekly staff discussions.Direct public questions toward the appropriate contact person/city department, if needed.Utilize ArcMap computer program/internet resources/historical maps/green bar printouts/microfilm reader to research property submitted for Administrative Approval process.Review submitted site plans, elevations, landscape plans, etc. for compliance.Stamp and sign off on three sets of plans submitted, if the requested is deemed appropriate for the site.Prepare staff report packets for printing and mailing to petitioners.This list of duties and responsibilities is not intended to be all-inclusive and may be expanded to include other duties or responsibilities that management may deem necessary from time to time. Qualifications Minimum Job Requirements and QualificationsBachelors degree in city planning or related field; degree from an American Planning Association accredited institution preferred. Two (2) years of experience working in a planning and zoning agency is required; two (2) years of experience may be substituted with an applicable master's degree in city planning or related field from an accredited American Planning Association institution. Must have thorough understanding of land use terminology, zoning principles and practices, current land use law and contemporary land use concepts and regulatory techniques. Working knowledge of Microsoft software and ArcMap is required, as well as research procedures and methodologies. Excellent writing and public speaking skills are required.Must be able to work independently to identify problems/issues and their resolution. Must be able to negotiate with petitioners to find solutions to problems without compromising ordinances and policies. Sound judgment based on an understanding of planning principles is required.Preferred Job Requirements and QualificationsMaster's degree in urban planning or related field and two (2) years of experience working in a planning and zoning agency. Membership in the American Planning Association or other related professional organization. All rates are bi-weekly. 2026 Rate Sheet - To view our rate sheet, please copy and paste this link into your web browser: https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:VA6C2:67382b58-4d1a-4519-89d7-8453f91e19a1Life Insurance Employee Only (rates per $1,000 per month):Basic: Employer PaidOptional Life Insurance Employee Only (rates per $1,000 per month)Additional: <25-29 $0.05830-34 $0.08335-39 $0.099 40-44 $0.13245-49 $0.22350-54 $0.36355-59 $0.60060-64 $0.79565-69 $1.32970 + $2.054IMPORTANT PERF UPDATE: *For more information on eligibility options, refer to Proposal 21-288 https://bit.ly/3exq8yR 1. All employees hired/rehired after 1/1/2022 have a choice to select the PERF Hybrid plan (3% + Pension) or the INPRS My Choice: Retirement Savings plan (3% + 1% Contribution). The Hybrid plan consists of two components:Annuity Savings Account (ASA) -This consists of the mandatory employee contribution of three (3%) percent of compensation (made for the employee by the City), plus interest credits or earnings. Youre always vested in your ASA portion - its always yours.Pension - The pension portion of the retirement benefit is funded by contributions made by the employer over the course of the employees career and separate from the annuity savings account. Employees enrolled in the PERF Hybrid plan are eligible for retirement benefits at age sixty-five (65) if they have ten (10) or more years of creditable service. After June 30, 1995, employees may retire at age sixty (60) with at least fifteen (15) years of credible service or if the members age in years plus the years of credible service equals at least 85 and the member is at least fifty-five (55) years of age. With fifteen (15) or more years of creditable service, the employee may retire as early as age fifty (50) with a reduced pension.2. Employees hired/rehired by the City and County between 1/1/2017 and 12/31/2021 will be automatically enrolled in the PERF My Choice: Retirement Savings plan. This plan is an annuity savings account (ASA) only plan and does not have a pension component. Any service that an employee has in the My Choice: Retirement Savings Plan will not count toward the service time requirements for pension eligibility in the Hybrid Plan.With the PERF My Choice: Retirement Savings Plan, the ASA is split up into two parts:Part one - This consists of the mandatory employee contribution of three (3%) percent of compensation (made for the employee by the City), plus interest credits or earnings. Youre always vested in your ASA portion - its always yours.Part two - This consists of an additional variable rate contribution paid by the City toward your ASA. This variable rate contribution is currently 1% of your gross wages. Vesting in the value of the variable rate employer contribution will vary by length of participation. You are:• 20 percent vested after 1 full year of participation• 40 percent vested after 2 full years of participation• 60 percent vested after 3 full years of participation• 80 percent vested after 4 full years of participation • 100 percent vested after 5 full years of participation3. All employees hired/rehired prior to 1/1/2017 are grandfathered into PERF Hybrid plan. The Hybrid plan consists of two components:Annuity Savings Account (ASA) -This consists of the mandatory employee contribution of three (3%) percent of compensation (made for the employee by the City), plus interest credits or earnings. Youre always vested in your ASA portion - its always yours.Pension - The pension portion of the retirement benefit is funded by contributions made by the employer over the course of the employees career and separate from the annuity savings account. Employees enrolled in the PERF Hybrid plan are eligible for retirement benefits at age sixty-five (65) if they have ten (10) or more years of creditable service. After June 30, 1995, employees may retire at age sixty (60) with at least fifteen (15) years of credible service or if the members age in years plus the years of credible service equals at least 85 and the member is at least fifty-five (55) years of age. With fifteen (15) or more years of creditable service, the employee may retire as early as age fifty (50) with a reduced pension.4. City Employees hired/rehired between 1/1/2017 and 12/31/21 that are members of the City AFSCME labor union can choose to enroll in either the PERF My Choice: Retirement Savings plan or the PERF Hybrid plan. Both plans are described above. Employees have 60 days to choose which option they want, and by state law this cannot be changed. If no choice is made, the employee will then be automatically added to the PERF My Choice: Retirement Savings plan. The Indiana General Assembly has enacted a provision that allows public employees to make voluntary contributions in addition to the mandatory three percent (3%) contributions. Employees may contribute up to an additional ten- percent (10%) of their compensation per pay period to the annuity savings account. This means that the maximum level of contributions to the annuity savings account under this new provision is thirteen percent (13%) of an employees compensation per pay period.Employees who separate from the city within their first ten (10) years of employment need to contact INPRS - PERF regarding their ASA account. Questions relating to PERF may be directed to INPRS - PERF at:Indiana Public Retirement SystemPublic Employees Retirement FundOne North Capitol, Suite 001Indianapolis, Indiana 46204(888) 236-3544 Employer City of Indianapolis and Marion County Address 200 E. Washington Street CCB 1501 Indianapolis, Indiana, 46204 Phone 317-327-5211 Website http://www.indy.gov