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City planner skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Nancy Fischer

Below we've compiled a list of the most critical city planner skills. We ranked the top skills for city planners based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 9.3% of city planner resumes contained planning commission as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills a city planner needs to be successful in the workplace.

15 city planner skills for your resume and career

1. Planning Commission

Planning Commission is a panel comprising of five individuals or more that is chosen by the City Council to coordinate on actions related to development and planning. They help to evaluate development applications, counsel on development issues, provide directions in planning proposals and assist in allocating capital for public projects.

Here's how city planners use planning commission:

Facilitate project and plan review discussion at City Council, Historic Preservation Commission and Planning Commission meetings.
Participated in Planning Commission and City Council meetings for consultation on agenda items.

2. GIS

A geographic information system (GIS) is a tool for capturing, storing, manipulating, analyzing, managing and presenting various forms of geographic data.

Here's how city planners use gis:

Utilized planning related software and GIS applications; and basic statistics and mathematical calculations.
Managed and oversee the integration of GIS (Geographic Information Systems) into the City of Alexandria, LA.

3. Regional Planning

Here's how city planners use regional planning:

Involved in the urban & regional planning management role.
Prepared demographic profiles for neighborhood planning areas and population projections by traffic zone for Regional Planning Commission.

4. City Planning

Here's how city planners use city planning:

Serve as staff to the city Planning & Zoning Board, Board of Zoning Appeals and Architecture Review Board.
Coordinated with City Planning Staff to set internal review dates and to schedule public review of rezoning projects.

5. Community Development

Community development refers to the process where community members are being supported by agencies to identify or take collective action on issues that are important to them.

Here's how city planners use community development:

Served as city liaison for, and assisted the redevelopment activities of, CDBG-funded community development corporations and community organizations.
Represented the City and Department of Community Development in public hearings before appointed/elected decision makers.

6. City Ordinances

Here's how city planners use city ordinances:

Research city ordinances and propose revisions in conjunction with the city attorney's office and the elected officials.
Review development plans and document compliance with City ordinances.

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7. Comprehensive Plan

Here's how city planners use comprehensive plan:

Briefed high level officials on the technical aspects of environmental and comprehensive planning in a manner that is easily understandable.
Assisted City staff in the enforcement of local ordinances and in interpreting city codes and comprehensive plans.

8. Economic Development

Economic development refers to an increase of creation of wealth that overall benefits a community. This may occur when a community, city, or country produces more goods to sell or when a job program is developed. By increasing the wealth of a community, the economy is stimulated and the quality of life for that population also increases.

Here's how city planners use economic development:

Supervised planning staff and interns while working closely with engineering, economic development and public safety staff.
Led a review team of 10 professionals on assigned development projects and reviewed economic development proposals.

9. Development Projects

Development Projects include all contracts, constructions, and projects that may develop an area for housing or commercial construction. These projects frequently require multiple departments to prepare the space for construction projects, including how the construction will take place, who will finance the project, and whether any refurbishments or renovations will be needed.

Here's how city planners use development projects:

Inspect development projects throughout construction phasing.
Acquired and managed property on behalf of the City of Jackson, MS for development and redevelopment projects.

10. Development Review

Here's how city planners use development review:

Assisted in the development of City policy and procedures for urban redevelopment, development review and capital project coordination.
Conducted Redevelopment Review Committee meetings for projects which were incorporated within redevelopment zoning.

11. Staff Reports

Here's how city planners use staff reports:

Perform extensive written and oral interaction through staff reports, interviews, PowerPoint, and informational memos.
Prepared staff reports for Planning and Zoning and City Council members.

12. Urban Design

Here's how city planners use urban design:

Prepared development plans for Chicago's downtown area, including the River North Urban Design Plan and Near South Development Plan.
Promote transit-oriented development, affordable housing, and good urban design.

13. Master Plan

Here's how city planners use master plan:

Evaluated and analyzed regional and master planning issues, administered policies and developed grants.
Initiated and implemented a downtown master plan which resulted in several million dollars of new private development.

14. Historic Preservation

Here's how city planners use historic preservation:

Assist property owners and developers in understanding City and Historic Preservation Commission regulations and the necessary steps for compliance.
Coordinated training sessions for local historic preservation society in the area of grant preparation and administration.

15. Technical Assistance

Technical assistance is the non-financial assistance provided by local or international specialists. The purpose of technical assistance is to maximize the project's implementation and quality of the final product. Technical assistance consists of sharing information, the transmission of working knowledge, and other transfer of technical data which would aid the administration, management team and help build the project. The technical assistance focuses on particular needs identified by the beneficiary country and is delivered in the form of missions.

Here's how city planners use technical assistance:

Provided technical assistance and policy analysis to neighborhood groups.
Provided guidance and technical assistance to various departments within the city government.

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What skills help City Planners find jobs?

Tell us what job you are looking for, we’ll show you what skills employers want.

What city planner skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?

Nancy Fischer

Professor of Sociology, Augsburg University

In terms of maximizing salary potential in the field, if one is going into Urban Planning, then having a Master's degree in Urban Planning means climbing the ladder more quickly - in 10 -15 years one could be in leadership positions. One needs to be able to work with data, and understand how cities operate when entering the field, but as one rises into senior positions, it's that big-picture thinking about policy, the politics of city decision-making and the social skills to work well with teams, with the public, and with political leaders that really pay off.

Do you want to know more?

List of city planner skills to add to your resume

The most important skills for a city planner resume and required skills for a city planner to have include:

Planning Commission
GIS
Regional Planning
City Planning
Community Development
City Ordinances
Comprehensive Plan
Economic Development
Development Projects
Development Review
Staff Reports
Urban Design
Master Plan
Historic Preservation
Technical Assistance
Development Proposals

Level Planning
Use Development
Staff Support
Technical Reports
Design Reviews
Transportation Planning
Code Enforcement
General Plan
Statistical Data
Public Hearings
Building Permits
Development Applications
City Codes
Plan Review
Design Standards
Design Guidelines

Subdivision Regulations
City Officials
Planning Board
Data Collection
NYC
Advisory Committee
City Limits
Autocad
Government Officials
CDBG
Community Organizations
Community Boards
PowerPoint
Environmental Policy
State Agencies

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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