Rumour from Brent Toderian is that the person filling the Chief Planner position at City of Vancouver will be announced this week.
As Brent has tweeted and written in the Hive:
. . . . our new chief planner will face big challenges, and will need to be positioned well for success by Council. He or she will need to be allowed to take the time needed to listen and learn, because there will be a huge learning curve with the job. We will all need to give the new chief planner the room and support to take intelligent risks, the mandate to innovate, and the independent, un-muzzled voice to once again be a vocal champion for great city-making! . . .
. . . I wish our new chief planner good luck and much success, because I love Vancouver, and I want us to keep getting better in every way. But it will take more than wishing. It will take all of us helping and participating, and constructively contributing to the important processes and discussions that shape our city. It will take a new culture, a plan, and real action to fix what’s been broken. It will take positioning this new planning leader for success. And it will take all of us sending the message that we value smart and creative city planning, great urban design, and honest public engagement. Vancouver deserves nothing less.
His Hive article is a good read, with lots of history and 5 “big high-level challenges” he sees facing the new Chief Planner.
