Planner III (5291)

City and County of San Francisco; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

The City and County of San Francisco’s Planning Department is seeking a Planner III in Environmental Planning to perform complex environmental reviews, coordinate with agencies, and prepare staff reports. The role covers CEQA/NEPA processes, project analysis, and public outreach, with opportunities to supervise and mentor junior staff.

Applicants must have advanced planning education and substantial experience; additional qualifications include knowledge of environmental laws, GIS, and strong

Qualifications

• Experience with CEQA/NEPA environmental review processes.
• Knowledge of federal, state, and local environmental laws and planning practices.
• Strong analytical and communication skills for presenting findings.

Responsibilities

• Perform difficult environmental impact evaluations including EIR analysis and modeling.
• Coordinate environmental impact reviews with agencies and project sponsors.
• Prepare staff reports, technical documents, and presentations for decision-makers.

Skills

CEQA/NEPA knowledge

GIS/mapping

Written and verbal communication

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree

Tools

GIS

Job description

Specific information regarding this recruitment process is listed below:

• Application Opening:October 13, 2026
• Application Deadline:October 27, 2026 at 11:59 PM (PDT)

Appointment Type: This is a Temporary Provisional (TPV) position, limited to no more than 3 years in duration. This temporary position is excluded by the Charter from the competitive Civil Service examination process. This is considered "at will" and shall serve at the discretion of the Department Head. This position will be subject to the Permanent Civil Service examination process at a later date. Successful participation in the Permanent Civil Service examination and selection through an open competitive process is needed in order to be considered for the permanent appointment.

The Department

The San Francisco Planning Department (CPC) shapes how land is used to meet community needs and guide our city’s future, creating inclusive, sustainable, and prosperous neighborhoods. We envision an equitable San Francisco where everyone thrives—a welcoming city that honors diverse cultures, provides secure housing, strengthens environmental resilience, and drives economic stability for current and future generations.

Job Description

Under direction, the Planner III in the Environmental Planning Division performs difficult and responsible environmental review work, participating in all phases of environmental review including analysis of environmental impacts and mitigation measures; coordinates difficult environmental review cases; performs complex initial environmental studies; provides information to the public on environmental review procedures; evaluates projects for compliance with applicable environmental laws, regulations, and policies; and coordinates with project sponsors, consultants, regulatory agencies, and other City departments on environmental review matters; and performs related duties as required.

The Planner III may also perform complex and responsible planning work in areas such as land use, zoning, urban design, economic development, housing development, open space and recreation, code enforcement, historic preservation, real estate, waterfront planning, airport planning, park planning, natural resource management, emergency planning,orother related planning fields.

Important and Essential Duties

Essential duties of the position include but are not limited to the following:

• Performs difficult environmental impact evaluations of projects including review of technical portions of environmental impact reports (EIRs) involving mathematical modeling, surveys, analyses, and forecasts as applied to a range of environmental matters such as air pollution, water, energy, waste and endangered species
• Reviews EIRs for compliance with federal, state, and local laws and regulations;
• Coordinates environmental impact reviews for major public and private projects, including preliminary conferences, consultations with consulting specialists, coordination with other involved agencies and Planning Department staff.
• Prepares and presents environmental review findings, recommendations, staff reports, technical reports, correspondence, and other documents for the City Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors, and other decision-making bodies.
• Supervises, designs, and prepares graphic presentations including maps, reports,plans, PowerPoint (or similar) presentations,charts, models, sketches and graphs to illustrate and analyze environmental, planning and development concepts
• Reviews and/or coordinates the Federal, State, and Local permitting processes, including coordinating various stakeholders and integrating required data and documents and obtaining other regulatory approvals for projects;
• Supervises and reviews the work of subordinates engaged in the performance of professional and sub-professional level planning work; oversees consultant planning work.
• Prepares clearly written, concise staff reports and documents that are understandable to the general public; prepares (or assists in the preparation of) reports and planning studies; provides information on planning policies, practices and procedures.
• Coordinates with other city, regulatory and governmental agencies on planning matters; reviews documents prepared by other government agencies, such as technical reports, policies, legislation and plans.
• Represents the Department/Agency to government officials, community groups, developers, business organizations and the general public.
• Interpretsand explains legal, technical and procedural aspects of planning work to agencies, commissioners, government officials and members of the public.
• Reviews project plans and supporting technical materials, including architectural, site, landscape, engineering, and other project documents (e.g., site plans, floor plans, exterior elevations; structural plans; etc.) for consistency with applicable environmental and planning requirements.

Planner III’s may be required to attend meetings or participate in work-related activities outside of normal working hours (evenings and weekends) at local boards and commissions and in various community locations. Some positions may require possession of a valid driver license and may require specialized experience in order to perform department-specific planning duties.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications

• Possession of a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university AND four (4) years (8,000 hours) of verifiable full-time-equivalent experience in an urban, city, regional and/or other related planning environment (such as transportation planning, environmental planning, architecture or urban design);

OR

• Possession of a master's degree from an accredited college or university in City, Regional or Urban Planning, or a closely related field such as Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Geography, Urban Studies or Environmental Studies AND two (2) years (4,000 hours) of verifiable full-time-equivalent experience in an urban, city, regional and/or other related planning environment (such as transportation planning, environmental planning, architecture or urban design).

Applicants must meet the minimum qualifications requirement by the final filing date unless otherwise noted.

Desirable Qualifications

During the selection process the following desirable qualifications may be used to identify applicants selected to become a job finalist.

• Experience conducting or coordinating environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and/or the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
• Experience preparing, reviewing, or coordinating Initial Studies, Negative Declarations, Mitigated Negative Declarations, Environmental Impact Reports (EIRs), and related environmental documents.
• Knowledge of federal, state, and local environmental laws, regulations, policies, and procedures applicable to land use and development projects.
• Experience evaluating environmental impacts and mitigation measures related to topics such as air quality, greenhouse gas emissions, transportation, noise, biological resources, cultural resources, water resources, energy, hazardous materials, and other environmental topics.
• Experience coordinating environmental review with project sponsors, consultants, technical specialists, regulatory agencies, and other governmental agencies.
• Experience reviewing technical studies, environmental analyses, and consultant-prepared environmental documents.
• Strong analytical, written, and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain complex environmental and planning concepts to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Experience presenting environmental review findings and recommendations to planning commissions, boards, public agencies, community groups, and the public.
• Experience using GIS, mapping, data analysis, or other technical tools to support environmental or planning analysis.

Applications will be screened for relevant qualifying experience. Additional screening mechanisms may be implemented in order to determine candidates’ qualifications. Applicants meeting the minimum qualifications are not guaranteed advancement to the interview.

Verification
Applicants may be required to submit verification of qualifying education and experience at any point during the recruitment and selection process. If education verification is required, information on how to verify education requirements, including verifying foreign education credits or degree equivalency, can be found at http://sfdhr.org/index.aspx?page=456

Note
Falsifying one's education training, or work experience or attempted deception on the application may result in disqualification for this and future job opportunities with the City and County of San Francisco.

Additional Information

What else should I know?

Additional Information Regarding Employment with the City and County of San Francisco:

Questions: If you have any questions regarding this recruitment or application process, please contact the exam analyst, Zoey Feng, by telephone at 628-652-7628, or by email at [e-mail] .

The City and County of San Francisco encourages women, minorities and persons with disabilities to apply. Applicants will be considered regardless of their sex, race, age, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition (associated with cancer, a history of cancer, or genetic characteristics), HIV/AIDS status, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, military and veteran status, or other protected category under the law.