LYNN — City officials have enlisted the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) to conduct a study on how to build a planning department in Lynn. The city has been without a planning department, or city planner, for more than two decades.
The study is expected to be completed by the end of December, but short-term recommendations were presented to the City Council by an MAPC representative last week.
The city is not responsible for the cost of the study as it is being conducted through the MAPC’s Technical Assistance Program, which enables and assists municipalities in implementing projects.
Two major recommendations presented to the council included two hires in the interim, a chief planner at a salary of $100,000 to $125,000 and a principal or senior planner, who would be responsible for site plan review and transportation, at a salary of $75,000 to $90,000, according to an MAPC presentation.
“This work that MAPC is doing is a key piece to the future economic development prosperity of our city,” said Mayor Thomas M. McGee in a statement. “In the short term, having one or two staffers with traditional planning backgrounds and educations will centralize and coordinate all of that work.
“I recognize that financially, there are many competing needs for limited dollars and we still have a long way to go before the city is financially stable. However, we have never been more poised for economic development success, which will in turn positively affect the city’s financial health.”
McGee said city officials have to think creatively and learn best practices from other communities about how some of the short-term recommendations from the MAPC can be implemented to move Lynn forward.
Those two potential hires would work out of the mayor’s office in the interim. Given the city’s current financial state, some options are being floated such as enlisting contractors for the two positions at stipends rather than hiring city employees.
It hasn’t been determined yet how planning staff or a department, requiring additional staff, would be paid for.
Last year, under former Mayor Judith Flanagan Kennedy, a job posting was put out for a new city planner with a salary range of $75,000 to $100,000.
A plan was put together in which the Economic Development & Industrial Corporation of Lynn, the city’s development bank, and the Department of Community Development would pay $150,000 each to fund the position for three years. But no one was hired.
What is working in Lynn, according to an MAPC presentation, is major development is progressing across the city from the waterfront to the downtown, arts and culture has had positive economic impacts, there’s experienced staff with knowledge of the city, and a shared desire to grow its tax base and diversify its housing stock.
Challenges include not having a Master Plan for the city, no certified planner on the city’s payroll, a lack of capacity and support for the Zoning Board of Appeals and zoning that hasn’t been looked at comprehensively in decades, according to the MAPC.
In addition, there’s no central department responsible for all the functions of a contemporary planning and development agency. Almost all other comparable cities include a planning department. The residency requirement for a city planner is listed as an issue, in terms of a lack of new perspective and fresh eyes, according to the MAPC.
Ward 6 Councilor Peter Capano said a city planner would have to have the background to understand Chapter 91, the Massachusetts Public Waterfront Act, in terms of waterfront development in a city like Lynn. He said a planner would need to know the importance of open space.
