Executive Vice President - Planning & Development

The primary purpose of this position is to plan, direct and manage planning, design and development initiatives undertaken by the Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) including: 1) planning for redevelopment of PHA housing developments, 2) identifying opportunities and planning for new housing and commercial development to be undertaken by PHA directly or with third party partners, and 3) supervision of the process leading up to construction including acquisition, financial analysis, funding, design development, local approval and developer selection processes for PHA development initiatives.

This position articulates and communicates PHA’s vision and direction with respect to development strategies. This position involves the management and oversight of multiple, varied neighborhood-wide and site-specific planning and development initiatives that require some combination of master planning, engineering and environmental studies, financial analysis and design development. This position undertakes financial analysis of development initiatives, secures development funding, secures local zoning and other land use approvals, develops detailed construction specifications and coordinates developer selection processes.

• Oversees and directs the work of internal staff and consultants in the development of needs assessments, planning studies, engineering studies, environmental reviews, land use studies and comprehensive master plans;
• Tracking and managing job costs and implementing steps to reduce costs as needed to conform to budget requirements.
• Assessing and prioritizing multiple tasks, projects, and demands; planning and coordinating the work of others.
• Oversees development of detailed technical plans and specifications and other contract documents for inclusion in bid packages;
• Establishing and maintaining effective working relationships with co-workers, residents, the general public, and all stakeholders.
• Reviews and takes appropriate actions on contractor invoices to ensure conformance with agreed upon scope of services and timely payment for goods and services received;
• Interacting with people of different social, economic, and ethnic backgrounds.
• Oversees and directs the work of internal staff and consultants in the preparation of development finance documents including but not limited to cost estimates, sources and uses budgets and operating proformas;
• Conducts joint planning and meets weekly or more frequently as needed with the PHA Construction Management Division and other internal PHA staff to review development project status, update project timelines, and identify and resolve obstacles and issues that impact development project timelines and budgets;
• Works continuously with PHA Construction Management Division to ensure timely and efficient hand-offs of pipeline projects prior to construction;
• Coordinates with and manages contracts with third party architects, engineers, financial analysts, planners and other contractors;
• Prepares, monitors and continuously updates budgets for all planned and in process projects to reflect planned versus actual expenditures;
• Construction document handling, interpretation, and administration, including, but not limited to, contracts, drawings, and specifications.
• Oversees and directs the work of internal staff and consultants in the preparation of design documents including conceptual site and unit plans, schematic designs, working drawings and other technical specifications;
• Managing consultants and manpower, and delegating tasks to complete goals, objectives, and schedules.
• Represents and advocates for PHA development and funding priorities including conducting meetings with residents, elected officials, government officials, financial institutions, developers and others;
• Creating and aggressively seeking out and securing funding.
• Ensures compliance/conformance of design specifications and plans to all applicable federal, state and local codes as well as additional requirements of funders as applicable;
• Supervises, directs and coordinates the activities of Planning and Design division staff and/or assigned contractors. Assigns work to departmental staff and/or contractors and continuously reviews and evaluates the performance of staff and/or contractors in meeting workload requirements;
• Interpreting and applying local, state, and federal construction rules and regulations.
• Oversees and directs the work of internal staff and consultants to assess land use potential, conduct engineering and environmental studies, determine land values and negotiate acquisitions;
• Using initiative and independent judgment within established procedural guidelines.
• Evaluating policies and procedures and making recommendations for improvement.
• Seeks out, analyzes and makes recommendations for development projects including identification and analysis of sites, relationship to PHA’s mission and project feasibility;
• Project management, engineering, and cost estimating and containment standards and practices.
• Meets with PHA senior management and others to present findings, explain the significance of conclusions, justify recommendations, and answer questions on project management;
• Analyzes and resolves complex, precedent-setting problems, keeping the supervisor informed of the disposition of each situation;
• Conducts reviews and evaluation of assigned topics of a technical, administrative or program nature; drafts statistical or narrative reports for use as reference material at meetings and conferences; AND
• Planning, design, engineering, and construction methodologies, standards, and practices.
• Land use planning, architectural design, and engineering oversight.
• Coordinates with and supports the activities of PHA’s Construction Management Division to ensure successful completion of planned projects;
• Creating and managing the development of construction documents, including, but not limited to, contracts, drawings, and specifications.
• Prepares, monitors and continuously updates comprehensive project plans for all planned and in process development activities;
• Organizing and managing cost estimating, bidding, buyout, and scheduling procedures.
• Leads efforts to secure funding to support development priorities including but not limited to development of Low Income Housing Tax Credit, New Markets Tax Credit, Federal Home Loan Bank, Choice Neighborhoods and other current and potential funding sources;

Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university with an emphasis in planning and design or other related field; AND a minimum of (10) ten years’ related experience (e.g. planning and design of large scale multifamily housing and commercial developments, comprehensive oversight of complex development projects from inception to completion, experience in securing funding from multiple sources to support multifamily construction); OR an equivalent combination of education, training and experience.

• Communicating effectively both verbally and in writing with audiences possessing varied education, economic, cultural and ethnic backgrounds.
• Principles and practices of public sector administrative management, including cost accounting, budgeting, purchasing, contract management, contract administration, customer service, and employee supervision.
• A valid Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Driver's License may be required.
• Records management principles, particularly as applicable to departmental records, reports, and documentation.
• Multifamily and mixed-use development process; architectural design including federal, state and local code and other requirements; land use planning; engineering analysis; environmental analysis; project financing; project management methods
• Standard (e.g. MS Office) and specialized (e.g. project management/scheduling) software and equipment.

Annual Salary: $165,000 - $180,000