Senior Planner - Office of Planning

Senior Planner - Office of Planning

Salary

$82,337.00 - $128,651.00 Annually

Location

Apple Valley, MN

Job Type

Full-Time

Remote Employment

Flexible/Hybrid

Job Number

14240.26.001

Department

PD PLANNING - 2370003

Division

Physical Development Admin > 7001

Opening Date

10/13/2026

Closing Date

10/29/2026 4:30 PM Central

• Description
• Benefits
• Questions

General Description

POSTING TYPE: Open-competitive

DEPARTMENT: Office of Planning

HOURS: Full-time

SALARY RANGE: $82,337 - $128,651/year (109 grade Level)

LOCATION: Western Service Center, Apple Valley

UNION: None

CLOSE DATE: 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 29, 2026

What Youll Do

A Senior Planner serves as a lead role in the design and development of policies and plans related to the Office of Planning. The Senior Planner serves on a multitude of team projects providing the technical expertise needed to develop and implement planning projects. This position will have a lead role in the 2050 Dakota County Comprehensive Plan update. Other project work may include park and greenway long-range plans, active living, pedestrian and bicycle planning, environmental planning (e.g. natural systems plan, solid waste plan, ground and surface water plans, and sustainability planning), and others.

Who We Are

Dakota County is Minnesota's third largest county and home to more than 400,000 residents. We strive every day to achieve excellence in public service, with a focus on four values: Service, Integrity, People, and Innovation.

Dakota County aims to create an environment that is welcoming and inclusive of diverse people, backgrounds, and experiences. Our goal is to have a workforce that is reflective of the communities and individuals we serve. We promote an equitable and culturally aware work environment where everyone can be their authentic selves.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelors Degree AND two years experience in Geography, Urban Planning, Public Administration, GIS, Landscape Architecture, or a related field.

OR

• An equivalent combination of education and experience to equal or exceed 6 years professional land use or community planning experience.

PREFERRED EDUCATION BEYOND MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• Masters Degree in Geography, Urban Planning, Public Administration, GIS, or Landscape Architecture or a related field.

• Grant writing or capital improvement planning experience.

• Knowledge of GIS applications and planning software.

• Comprehensive planning experience.

Duties & Responsibilities

These examples do not include all possible tasks in this work and do not limit the assignment of related tasks in any position of this classification. Regular attendance according to the positions management approved work schedule is required for all positions.

• Manage a range of Physical Development Division and inter-divisional planning initiatives, including formal plans, policies, and studies, by developing project teams, roles, desired outcomes, interim milestones, stakeholder engagement, advisory committee participation, and Board presentations.
• Effectively manage consultants in the preparation of plans and studies. Oversee the process of soliciting and selecting consultants. Ensure on-time, on-budget delivery.
• Provide planning expertise to inter departmental teams.
• Write clear, concise plans to document policies, visions, goals, objectives, priorities, phasing, and budget needs. Oversee plan approval process with external agencies and County officials.
• Lead the design, preparation, and implementation of research and analysis. Conduct quantitative and qualitative research and analysis to synthesize findings that can inform policy and plans. Develop and implement a range of studies (e.g., precedents, best practices, benchmarking, or legal requirements) to inform plan development.
• Develop and execute public engagement plans that gather community input representative of Dakota County's demographics.
• Update and maintain technical expertise in mapping, engagement, analysis, and presentation. Recommend software and hardware resources as needed.
• Manage and coordinate contractor selection and contract administration.
• Identify and pursue grant opportunities to support planning efforts and implementation.
• Identify, research, and track emerging issues with potential impacts to County programs, plans, and services.
• Respond to information requests from staff, elected officials, and the public in a timely manner.
• Prepare and manage grants for external funding.

Essential Functions: 1-12

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities and Work Environment

• Ability to manage planning project teams from multiple disciplines, including staff and consultant teams.
• Excellent communication skills, both oral and written.
• Strong skills with Microsoft Office 365 (e.g. Outlook, Word, PowerPoint, Excel), ArcGIS Pro, Adobe, and commonly-used software for word processing, graphic design, presentations, database management and analysis, mapping and spatial analysis, and surveys/audience participation.
• Ability to manage projects to meet deadlines with high-quality results.
• Ability to facilitate meetings, discussions, strategic planning sessions with staff, elected officials, other agencies, and the public.
• Public speaking and presentation skills.
• Ability to write and manage grants.
• Demonstrated knowledge of and skill in database design, database management and GIS database optimization. Additional expertise in specialized data analysis and modeling tools, such as statistical summaries, travel demand modeling.
• Demonstrated knowledge of principles and practices relating to planning and program development.
• Demonstrated knowledge of the roles and responsibilities of Dakota County and the roles and responsibilities of federal, state, metro, municipal, and other agencies.
• The ability to develop cooperative relationships with both technical and policy staff in Dakota County, state and local government officials, and private entities and citizens.
• Ability to manage multiple tasks and be adaptable to a variety of disciplines and requests.
• Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to reason through projects.

WORK ENVIRONMENT:

Work is primarily sedentary, although there is some walking and carrying of lightweight items such as laptop, notebooks, and work papers. The work is typically performed in an adequately lighted and climate-controlled office. There is some travel to meetings and conferences away from the regular place of work. Lifting requirement of up to 20 pounds on an occasional basis.

Benefits

• Comprehensive and affordable medical, dental, vision, and other benefits
• Excellent work-life balance
• Generous paid time off (accrual rate starts at four weeks per year)
• Eleven paid holidays and one floating holiday each year
• Pension with a generous employer contribution
• Ability to work from home some of the time

Selection Process

• You submit an online application that includes supplemental questions
• We assign you a score based on your qualifications
• Top scoring candidates are referred to the hiring manager for interview consideration
• We conduct interviews and reference checks before extending an offer
• We extend an offer and conduct background checks

Visit our Benefits site for more information.

01

• Applicants for this recruitment will be rated based on their answers to the supplemental questions listed below and application materials. It is IMPERATIVE that information provided on the application and resume are detailed and clearly outline your work experience & skills. They must also support and/or match answers to the supplemental questions. Please initial the box below to CONFIRM that the information provided is accurate and true to the best of your knowledge. Falsification may result in disqualification from consideration for this and subsequent recruitments with Dakota County for up to three years.

02

Please initial the box below to CONFIRM that you understand that a background check including but not limited to criminal, employment, driving, and educational check may be conducted upon acceptance of a position.

03

Minimum Qualification - Please select the highest level of education completed. Degree must be held by the closing date of this recruitment.

• High School Diploma or G.E.D equivalent
• Professional/Technical Certificate equivalent to 1 year of full-time post secondary education
• Associates Degree
• Bachelors Degree
• Masters Degree
• Ph.D.

04

If you have a completed degree, identify your field of study.

• Geography
• GIS
• Landscape Architecture
• Public Administration
• Planning
• Urban Studies/Planning
• Another closely related field
• Unrelated degree

05

Minimum Qualification - Identify your years of full-time work experience in urban planning OR professional land use or community planning.

• Less than 1 years
• 1 year
• 2 years
• 3 years
• 4 years
• 5 years
• 6+ years

06

Identify, by selection, whether you have work experience in the following areas (check all that apply):

• Direct work experience in county or municipal government
• Grant writing or capital improvement planning
• ArcGIS Pro or other GIS applications
• Adobe Suite or other graphics and document layout applications.
• Project management for long-range and comprehensive plans.
• Public policy analysis and development
• None of the above

07

Identify, by selection, your areas of professional planning work experience (check all that apply):

• Interpreting and applying zoning ordinances, regulations, Comprehensive plans and applicable state and local land use laws.
• Presenting technical information to elected officials, planning commissions, boards, and the public.
• Facilitating public engagement and navigating complex or controversial land use issues.
• Comprehensive and long-range planning.
• None of the above

08

The full salary range for this position is $82,337 - $128,651 and preferred hiring range is $82,337 - $102,921 annually. The amount that is offered is dependent on the candidates' overall skills, education, experience and internal equity. The offer would also include the Countys benefits package.

Taking that information into consideration, what would be the minimum salary youd accept if selected for the position?

09

Your response to this question will help Dakota County evaluate the effectiveness of recruitment sources for this specific position. Please select the one source that most closely describes how you first learned about this opportunity.

• Facebook
• Friend, Family or Colleague
• Indeed
• Job Fair or Dakota County Event
• Job Interest e-mails from Dakota County
• League of Minnesota Cities
• LinkedIn
• Diversityjobs.com
• Minnesotaworks.net
• Minnesota Association of Counties
• Monster
• Professional Association Website
• Referred by a Dakota County Employee
• College Website, Instructor, Career Services
• Dakota County Website
• Other

10

If you selected "other" above, please indicate where you heard about this opportunity with Dakota County.

Required Question

Employer Dakota County

Address Administration Center

1590 Highway 55

Hastings, Minnesota, 55033-2372

Phone 651.438.4435

Website http://dakotacountymn.gov