The City of  Vancouver has named Gil Kelley as the new chief planner and general manager of the newly-created department of planning, urban design, and sustainability.

Kelley has been appointed by City Council to fulfill statutory responsibilities of the director of planning under the Vancouver Charter and will lead the city’s work on all city planning visioning, policy, urban design, and major development negotiations. He will be a voting member of the development permit board and a member of the Corporate Management Team.

The newly created department of planning, urban design, and sustainability will also have the sustainability group integrated within its mandate, which will support the effective implementation of our Greenest City Action Plan, Renewable City Strategy, and green building initiatives.

“Gil’s extensive experience in cities like San Francisco and Portland is highly valuable at a time when Vancouver is facing an affordability challenge like never before, and we are thrilled to have him join our team at City Hall,” said Mayor Gregor Robertson.

Kelley was previously director of city-wide planning for San Francisco and has previously served as Portland’s director of planning and Berkeley’s director of planning and development. He will start in his position on September 15, 2016.

“I am pleased and honoured to be taking the helm of planning in Vancouver, one of the most vibrant, liveable, and sustainable cities in the world,” says Kelley. “It’s a good moment in the city’s history to ‘double down’ on the those qualities and aspirations and take them to the next level, as Vancouver grows and prospers.”