Australia
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY Senior urban and regional planner with 35 years experience in Western Australian local government, including 18 years in management and 6 years as Principal Planner. Proven leader of statutory planning teams delivering high-volume development assessment, scheme amendments, heritage programs and compliance. Strong record in process improvement, digital transformation of planning services, stakeholder engagement and council reporting. Calm, outcomes-focused and experienced in public consultation and briefing elected members. CORE SKILLS Statutory planning & development assessment: DAs, subdivisions, scheme amendments, JDAP Team leadership, performance management, recruitment and restructure Budget management and revenue reporting Heritage planning and municipal heritage inventories Process improvement (Lean/Six Sigma Yellow Belt), KPI reporting Planning systems & e-lodgement: Authority, Proclaim, BuilderNET, eDA, Intramaps Stakeholder engagement, public consultation and council briefing Relevant legislation: TP & D Act, MRS Act, EPA Act, Heritage of WA Act, TP Regulations KEY ACHIEVEMENTS 35 years of planning experience across four Perth metropolitan local governments; 16 years in management roles. Manager Statutory Planning, City of Rockingham since Jan 2007: managed up to 11 officers, annual team budget $1.7M and ~$900K income. Delivered high-volume assessment: annually ~300 DAs, ~200 subdivision applications, ~20 scheme amendments; 100+ JDAP applications processed. Developed Proclaim DA & Scheme Amendment module (City of Cockburn) and Authority Development Compliance module (City of Rockingham). Led implementation of electronic DA portal and systems enabling 24/7 online lodgement and tracking. Prepared City of Rockingham Heritage Strategy 2020–2025 and managed multiple heritage projects. Western Australian Heritage Award Winner (1998, 2021); WA Heritage Commendation (2023).
I am currently employed as Manager Statutory Planning and are responsible for reviewing planning reports to Council, attending Planning and Engineering Service Committee Meetings, Development Assessment Panel Meetings, Point Peron Rehabilitation Committee Meetings, Heritage Reference Group Meetings. I also ensure Council correspondence is completed in advance of Council Meetings, monitor performance of the team (i.e. outstanding applications), support to Coordinator Statutory Planning, Planning Officers, Spatial Information Officer and Planning Administration Team. For over 10 years I managed a small team of Development Compliance Officers, before a restructure. Annually over 300 Development Applications, 200 Subdivision Applications, approximately 20 Scheme Amendments are completed. We have also processed over 100 JDAP applications since the establishment of DAPs over 12 years ago. I have reviewed Local Planning Policies, delegations, standard letters and prepared planning procedures and practice notes. More recently I have been involved in a series of workshops with planning consultants and my team to assist in reviewing the City of Rockingham Town Planning Scheme No.2 Text. Over the past 18 years I have managed a team of 13 officers, undertaken performance management, hiring/dismissal, heritage projects, including the preparation of the City of Rockingham Heritage Strategy 2020-2025. On a consistent monthly basis my team prepares various Council Reports on Local Planning Policies, Scheme Amendments and JDAP applications. I manage an annual budget of $1.7m, with an income of approx. $900k, which is set out in a Team Plan and updated annually, which feeds into the Annual Budget.
I resumed my substantive position as Principal Planner for the City for a period until December 2006.
I was appointed as Acting Director Planning and Development on a job exchange arrangement for a period of 12 months at the City of Cockburn, responsible for Council's Planning, Building, Health, Strategic, Environment and Land Services. I contributed to the strategic development of the organisation in the preparation of the Strategic Plan - 10 Year Plan. I assisted in setting work priorities and ensured that work ethic and standards are continually achieved. I also contributed to the review of Council's Division Budget and coordination of new programs between teams. There were also responsibilities for resolving staff problems and issues.