Assistant Planning & Community Development Director
Town of Mooresville, NC

Please follow this link to view the full brochure: https://www.affionpublic.com/position/assistant-director-of-planning-an…

About Mooresville

Since the year 2000, the Town of Mooresville’s population has increased from 19,048 to over 53,721 and is still growing! Situated in western North Carolina, Mooresville is less than an hour’s drive from Charlotte which offers big city amenities as well as the U.S. National Whitewater Center, and it’s just over 2 hours from Ashville and the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains.

The local economy is diverse, with a mix of manufacturing, retail, and service industries. Its proximity to Charlotte provides even more job opportunities and economic stability. Mooresville is the home of numerous high-tech industries, national and international corporate headquarters which includes Lowe’s Home Improvement.

Mooresville boasts a thriving downtown where historic preservation meets innovative amenities and businesses. Whether residents and visitors are gathering for a meal, supporting local breweries, coffee shops and other small businesses, enjoying a street festival or parade on Main Street, or attending a live performance at one of several venues, downtown has something for everyone. Significant investment continues to be made to increase connectivity, functionality, and overall quality for this heart of the town.

Mooresville is a vibrant community with numerous parks, recreational facilities, and cultural events. Leisure activities include Pickleball and a state-of-the-art skate park that is the largest skating complex in the southeast. The Town of Mooresville has an 18-hole golf course with a driving range, pro shop, snack bar, and nationally recognized restaurant. Mooresville is known for its quality of life, offering a mix of suburban and rural living, while still maintaining a smaller-town atmosphere.

Located in the heart of the Carolinas, Mooresville is perfectly situated on Lake Norman, which is the largest man-made lake in the state of North Carolina with more than 520 miles of shoreline. Thrillist.com named Mooresville one of the 12 Most Luxurious Lake Towns in the world! As such, choosing to reside in Mooresville means living in one of the most beautiful places on earth.

While the cost of living can vary depending on individual circumstances, Mooresville generally offers a lower cost of living compared to larger cities like Charlotte.

City Government

Mooresville operates under a Council-Manager form of government. The citizens elect a Mayor and six Commissioners as the Town’s governing body. The Mayor and two Commissioners are elected at-large. The other four Commissioners represent wards and must live in the ward they represent.

The Mayor serves a two-year term, while the Commissioners serve staggered four-year terms. The Mayor, two ward commissioners and one commissioner-at-large run in November of odd numbered years. All elections are non-partisan.

Providing resources and actions to make the Board of Commissioners vision a reality, the Town of Mooresville currently has a strong leadership team with many long-time employees. Both staff and the Board have been open to innovative ideas, practices and projects to better serve the Town’s residents and visitors as well as enhance economic development in the area.

Planning and Community Development Department

The Planning and Community Development Department consists of Permitting Specialists and Planners (Land use, Transportation, and Community Development). The planning staff oversees the private land development process, issues various permits, and assists property and business owners with various requests. They work with property owners, developers, design professionals, and business owners to provide guidance on property development, rezonings, permitting, property annexation into the Town’s corporate limits, and other elements of property development to ensure compliance with the Unified Development Ordinance and other Town policies and plans. Community Development staff support and encourage affordable housing, first-time homebuyers, and programs to ensure Mooresville remains a quality community for all residents.

Upcoming and Long-Range Projects

• Mooresville Tomorrow (Comprehensive Land Use Plan)
• Downtown Streetscape Plan
• Pedal Bicycle Plan
• Mobility Plan

The Position

Performs highly responsible work requiring independent judgment in conducting major activities and supervision in the land development, current planning, ordinance administration, comprehensive planning, community development, transportation planning, attainable housing, and/or other high-level planning functions. The Assistant Director also supervises, manages, and provides oversight to staff directly assigned to current planning, code enforcement, long-range planning, transportation planning, community development, and/or comprehensive planning core processes.

Education and Experience

A Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in planning, landscape architecture, or architecture and five to seven years of experience in planning, site design, and/or development review. One to three years of supervisory experience. Master’s Degree preferred. Experience in both public and private sectors is preferred. Special requirements include possession and maintenance of AICP certification, possession of a valid North Carolina Driver’s License and completion of the North Carolina School of Government’s Municipal Administration Course is preferred.

Essential Functions and Responsibilities

• Acts as staff liaison to various Town boards and commissions that may include the Board of Commissioners, Planning Board, Board of Adjustments, Historic Preservation Commission, Environmental Protection Commission, Beautification Committee, regional/local transportation committees/organizations, community development organizations, ad hoc committees, HOME Consortium, or others as assigned.
• Manages a variety of project types, including ordinance drafting, long-range plan writing, site layouts and design, historic preservation, master planning, and other projects related to applicable function areas in the department. Oversees long-range planning activities, including, but not limited to, the Town’s Comprehensive Plan, Small Area Plans and studies, and other long-range planning documents and efforts.
• Administers the Town of Mooresville zoning and subdivision ordinances, applicable portions of the General Code of Ordinances and other adopted regulatory and policy documents governing land use, land development, community development programs, code enforcement, affordable housing, and other applicable functional areas within the Town’s corporate and zoning jurisdiction.
• Coordinates and manages the land development and zoning administration core process, re-zonings, conditional use permits, and other processes and approvals necessary for land development and implementation of the Town’s zoning and land development regulations.
• Responds to requests for information from the Town Board, outside organizations and other departments, outside consultants, developers, and citizens; and is responsible for either conducting or coordinating the presentation of all associated materials.
• Reviews technical reports, data, and studies, including, but not limited to transportation impact analysis reports, environmental studies, geotechnical reports, census data, housing studies, and strategic plans.
• Manages a wide variety of projects related to planning, land development, community development, code enforcement, historic preservation, and GIS including, but not limited to strategic plans, ordinance drafting, standard operating procedures, site designs, adaptive re-use redevelopment, construction projects, and funding programs.
• Supervises staff to include prioritizing and assigning work, conducting performance evaluations, ensuring staff have adequate support, helping to develop leadership skills, and working with staff to ensure that they are moving towards achieving their career goals.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with various members of the public, Town officials, Town staff, and members of elected and appointed boards
• Leads community development activities such as writing and administering grants, supervising contract staff for CDBG, HOME and related grant opportunities from the public and private sector.
• Ensures that private development, Town projects, and/or regional projects are compliant with adopted regulatory and policy documents governing land use and development activity with the Town’s zoning jurisdiction, land use and transportation plans, community development and affordable housing programs and initiatives, small area plans and long-range planning documents.
• Oversees attainable housing, home repair programs, and other community development initiatives and programs.
• Strong ability to effectively communicate, orally, and in writing
• Assists with maintenance, updates, and implementation of the Town’s Comprehensive Transportation Plan (CTP). Assist with conducting other associated transportation and land use related studies and surveys.
• Oversees attainable housing, home repair programs, and other community development initiatives and programs.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Understanding of plans, plats, technical drawings, design details, land design, and construction terminology.
• Knowledgeable about and skilled in the use of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and ESRI software.
• Extensive knowledge of planning, land development, code enforcement, comprehensive planning, transportation planning, and community development initiatives.
• Ability to support, supervise, lead, and develop other staff members using modern management techniques.
• Understanding of the municipal budgeting process.

The Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate will have extensive experience in coordinating and facilitating meetings, formal and informal presentations with elected officials, appointed officials, and/or the general public, and informational presentations to the public, committees, and Town Board.

In addition, this position provides key coordination and technical support in implementing plans, policies, goals, and ordinances for land development, zoning administration, code enforcement, community development, and/or transportation planning, including facilitating scopes of work and coordination of staff resources.

The ideal candidate should be an outstanding leader of employees who provides analysis, research, ordinance and policy drafting, and other high-level functions within the Department on a wide range of issues and topics.

Effective communication of complex ideas along with strong collaboration will be necessary for this individual to be successful in working with individuals that have a wide variety of development interests, property owners, officials, and the public through the facilitation of meetings to gain input and consensus, surrounding ordinance and policy compliance.

Salary

The Town of Mooresville is offering a starting salary of $73,204 to $114,206, commensurate with experience and a comprehensive benefits package. Relocation assistance will also be available for the successful out-of-area candidate.

How To Apply

Applicants should forward a cover letter and resume to:

resumes@affionpublic.com
Reference: MOORESVILLEAPCDD

Affion Public
PO Box 794
Hershey, PA 17033
888.321.4922
www.affionpublic.com

*The deadline to receive resumes is February 20, 2025*

The Town of Mooresville is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We recruit, hire, train and promote employees without regard to race, religion, color, marital status, veteran status, disability, national origin, sex, age or any other protected category. We believe that true excellence comes from the confluence of many different perspectives. We are at our best, when everyone has an opportunity to contribute to the out- come. For additional information about the Town of Mooresville, please visit our website at MooresvilleNC.gov.