When you join the City of Guelph, you join a team of 2000 full and part-time employees who deliver services the community relies on every day. Together, we are bringing to life Guelph’s vision of an inclusive, connected, and prosperous city where we look after each other and our environment.
As a regional top employer, the City of Guelph values its employees and offers competitive salaries, excellent benefit packages, opportunities for professional development, a healthy work-life balance, and many roles with flexible work options. Our corporate values are integrity, service, inclusion, wellness, and learning. Guelph is consistently ranked as one of the best places in Canada to live, work, and play—all good reasons to consider a career in this beautiful city.
The Opportunity
Reporting to the Manager of Policy Planning and Urban Design, this position provides leadership to environmental planning staff with a focus on quality customer service and continuous improvement processes. The supervisor is responsible for guiding the environmental planning program in support of protecting and maintaining the City’s natural heritage system. Guided by the goals and objectives of the City of Guelph Corporate Strategic Plan and committed to the Corporate Values of integrity, service, inclusion, wellness and learning, the candidate will aid in the achievement of the Community Vision for an inclusive, connected, prosperous city.
Your role
Provide visible and positive leadership to staff; developing and nurturing a work environment that is inclusive, respectful and motivating for staff.
Responsible for the development and coordination of work plans for the environmental planning team, including forecasting, monitoring and reporting on the capital budget for environmental initiatives.
Develop and implement plans, policies and initiatives for the City’s Natural Heritage System and provide recommendations with respect to long range policy planning initiatives.
Oversee environmental planning input and recommendations to the development review process to ensure conformity with relevant environmental legislation, policies and regulations.
Provide project management and prepare recommendations, reports and presentations for environmental planning studies.
Manage and facilitate the implementation of, and updates to, the City’s Natural Heritage Action Plan.
Perform site visits of properties within the natural heritage system as required to determine the limits of natural heritage features and areas.
Provide advice and expertise by representing the City's natural heritage interests on interdepartmental project teams, committees, in meetings and at Council and Committee of the Whole meetings.
Collaborate with internal departments and external agencies/stakeholders on projects such as Official Plan updates, watershed and sub watershed studies, master plans, and environmental assessments.
Manage the development of education and awareness programs, implementation guidelines, and technical manuals with respect to environmental policy and development processes.
Provide evidence before the Ontario Land Tribunal and other tribunals, as required.
Develop and facilitate public consultation, liaison and community outreach.
Perform other related duties as assigned.
Qualifications
Considerable experience related to the duties listed above, normally acquired through a degree in Urban and Regional Planning, Environmental Planning, Environmental Sciences or closely related field and considerable experience in environmental planning preferably within a municipal environment. Candidates with an equivalent combination of education and experience may be considered.
Leadership skills demonstrated through experience supervising staff or leading work teams, preferably in a unionized environment.
Registered Professional Planner.
Must possess a valid ‘G” drivers licence with a good driving record. Successful candidates will be required to provide a current driver’s abstract prior to their start date to confirm their licence is held in good standing and that it has not been suspended or revoked under the Highway Traffic Act (HTA) or Criminal Code of Canada in the last 5 years. The City of Guelph will take into consideration the number of demerit points and/or nature of the infractions to determine if it meets our requirements.
Advanced knowledge of environmental policy and legislation including natural heritage, water resources and natural hazards policy of the Provincial Policy Statement, the Environmental Assessment Act, the Clean Water Act, the Ontario Water Resources Act, the Conservation Authorities Act, the Planning Act, the Species at Risk Act, Ecological Land Classification System, and relevant Provincial and Federal regulations and guidelines.
Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with a diverse group of stakeholders including the ability to communicate clearly and effectively both orally and in writing.
Ability to work independently as well as in a team environment and to prioritize to manage multiple priorities, to meet deadlines and achieve work plan objectives.
Excellent interpersonal, customer service and communication skills, with ability to communicate effectively with all levels of staff, Council, stakeholders and the general public
Excellent problem-solving techniques consistent with industry best practices and the application of legislation, policies and regulations.
Ability to provide solution-oriented customer service using good judgment, creativity, strategic thinking and effective communication.
Ability to evaluate options and develop recommendations.
Experience with GIS would be an asset.
Advanced skills in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint).
Knowledge of the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
In keeping with our corporate value of Wellness, The City of Guelph recognizes the many benefits of hybrid work arrangements including flexibility and better work-life balance for our employees. Where the work permits, employees will have the ability to participate in our Hybrid Work and our Flexible Time programs. Please note, this position is eligible for Hybrid and Flexible work arrangements (subject to change).
Rate
$87,200 – $109,000
How to apply
Qualified applicants are invited to apply using our online application system by Wednesday, March 1, 2023. Please note all applicants must complete the online questionnaire specific to this position at the time they submit their resume and cover letter in order to be considered. Proof of qualifications will be requested at the interview stage.
Please visit the job posting listed on our careers page and click on the “Apply for this job” button. Instructions will follow.
The City of Guelph is an equal opportunity employer that values diversity in the workplace. We are therefore happy to accommodate any individual needs in keeping with the Ontario Human Rights Code and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act. If you require an accommodation in order to participate in the hiring process, please contact us to make your needs known in advance.
Personal information collected through the recruitment process will be used solely to determine eligibility for employment. We thank all candidates in advance; however, only those being considered for an interview will be contacted.
When you join the City of Guelph, you join a team of 2000 full and part-time employees who deliver services the community relies on every day. Together, we are bringing to life Guelph’s vision of an inclusive, connected, and prosperous city where we look after each other and our environment.
As a regional top employer, the City of Guelph values its employees and offers competitive salaries, excellent benefit packages, opportunities for professional development, a healthy work-life balance, and many roles with flexible work options. Our corporate values are integrity, service, inclusion, wellness, and learning. Guelph is consistently ranked as one of the best places in Canada to live, work, and play—all good reasons to consider a career in this beautiful city.
