Job Description

About the Department

The Mayor’s Office of Strategic Planning & Community Development (OSPCD) is the planning and development agency for the City of Somerville. OSPCD’s mission is to improve the lives of everyone in Somerville by making it easier for people to get and keep stable housing, find quality jobs, and start and run a business; building safe and healthy streets and public spaces; and guiding how neighborhoods can change for the better while keeping what makes Somerville unique. OSPCD consists of seven divisions, including Economic Development, Finance & Administration, Housing, Housing Stability, Mobility, Planning, Preservation & Zoning, and Public Space & Urban Forestry.  

The Planning, Preservation, & Zoning (PPZ) division is staffed by a Director, Deputy Director, three Senior Planners, five Planners, a Community Outreach Coordinator, and an Administrative Assistant. PPZ’s core functions include the following: 

• Engaging with the community of Somerville residents, businesses, and organizations to develop long-term plans that guide future urban development, government policy, and capital improvement decision-making as the city evolves. 
• Staffing & administering the Historic Preservation Commission, Planning Board, Urban Design Commission, and Zoning Board of Appeals. 
• Coordinating review of permit applications by OSPCD staff to ensure urban development is compliant to standards and consistent with city policy. 
• Maintaining, revising, and updating the Somerville Zoning Ordinance to implement City policies and long-term planning. 

Statement of Duties

The Director of PPZ oversees the strategic direction of the division’s core functions and the overall development of staff and processes. The Deputy Director of Planning, Preservation, and Zoning (PPZ) supervises day-to-day administrative operations and procedures while assisting the Director with oversight of the core functions of the division. 

Essential Duties & Responsibilities 

The essential functions or duties listed below are intended only as illustrations of the various types of work that may be performed. The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the position if the work is similar, related, or a logical assignment to the position. (Note: not all duties are performed by all incumbents in each division). 

• Oversee the review of permit applications by OSPCD staff and other City departments. 
• Support City coordination efforts related to major redevelopment projects 
• Document and maintain the division’s standard operating procedures 
• Create, maintain, and administer the division’s training program 
• Create and maintain division document templates & graphic standards 
• Research and develop improvements to division processes and procedures 
• Oversee the preparation, filing, and maintenance of required documentation 
• Track and report the division's annual business 
• Track and report board & commission annual business 
• Meet regularly with staff, OSPCD Directors, elected officials, and other City departments. 
• Provide strategic policy advice and recommendations to the Division Director, Executive Director of OSPCD, and elected and appointed officials. 
• Assist in the development of the division’s annual budget, goals, projects, and work plan. 
• Assist in the management of staff  
• Assist with conducting regular division meetings 
• Provide direction and guidance to PPZ staff, including onboarding, training, and mentoring 

Minimum Qualifications  

Education and Experience:  

• Bachelor’s degree in architecture, city or urban planning, civil engineering, landscape architecture, urban design, or related field; Master’s degree preferred 
• Seven (7) years of professional experience 
• AICP certification is preferred 
• Experience in personnel management preferred 
• Demonstrated experience in team-based project management and the ability to prioritize workloads, multitask, and meet deadlines 
• Demonstrated experience in zoning compliance interpretation and regulatory permitting  

Knowledge, Abilities, and Skill 

• Understanding of current urban planning and community engagement practices. 
• Understanding of urban development projects at the planning, design, construction, and occupancy phases.  
• Understanding of Massachusetts planning & zoning laws, including MGL Ch 40A, 40B, 40C. 
• Familiarity of planning and development issues relevant to Somerville. 
• Ability to read, interpret, and analyze development plans, drawings, studies, and similar technical documents.  
• Excellent written and oral communication skills. 

Work Environment

The work environment involves everyday discomforts typical of offices, with occasional exposure to outside elements. Noise or physical surroundings may be distracting, but conditions are generally not unpleasant. Employee may be required to work beyond normal business hours to attend evening meetings.

Physical and Mental Requirements

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. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the position’s essential functions.

Physical Skills
Little or no physical demands are required to perform the work. Work effort principally involves sitting to perform work tasks, with intermittent periods of stooping, walking, and standing. There may also be some occasional lifting of objects such as books, office equipment and computer paper (up to 30 lbs.)

Motor Skills
Duties are largely mental rather than physical, but the job may occasionally require minimal motor skills for activities such as moving objects, operating a telephone system, computer and/or most other office equipment, typing and/or word processing, filing, and sorting.

Visual Skills
Visual demands include constantly reading documents for general understanding and for analytical purposes and routinely reviewing maps and blueprints with a need for color vision.

Hours : Full-time
FLSA: Exempt
Union: Non-Union
Salary: $110,000.00 annually plus benefits
Date Posted: September 2nd, 2025

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The City of Somerville is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, age, national origin, disability or any other protected category. Women, minorities, veterans, and persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

Auxiliary aids and services, written materials in alternative formats, and reasonable modifications in policies and procedures will be provided to qualified individuals with disabilities free of charge, upon request. Persons with disabilities who need auxiliary aids and services for effective communication (i.e., CART, ASL), written materials in alternative formats, or reasonable modifications in policies and procedures in order to access the programs, activities, and meetings of the City of Somerville should please contact Adrienne Pomeroy at 617-625-6600 x 2059 or apomeroy@somervillema.gov.

Pre-Employment Requirements for All Employees:

• MA Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) clearance
• Completion of Conflict-of-Interest Law Education training for municipal employees

Overview of Total Rewards:

• 4 weeks annual vacation for non-union positions. Union positions vary by contract. Please note, police officers are members of the SPEA union.
• Medical insurance through the Group Insurance Commission (GIC) - 80% of premium costs paid by City
• Dental coverage low and high plans through Cigna
• Vision care through Vision Service Plan (VSP)
• Long term disability through Sun Life
• Group and voluntary life insurance through Boston Mutual
• Health Care and Dependent Care flexible spending through Benefit Strategies
• Deferred compensation plans through a choice of three vendors
• Free, confidential services through the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) provided by E4Health
• Annual cancer screening & wellness release
• Tuition reimbursement
• MBTA pass program
• FREE Blue Bikes membership
• Eligible employer for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF)

Benefits listed are for benefits-eligible positions and the above information is meant to be a general overview of the benefit programs offered by the City of Somerville and not a binding contract.

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