Director City Development - Bayside City Council

The prospect
Bayside City Council is seeking an outstanding leader for the Director City Development role. Guided by the vision of “One Bayside” and the Council Plan outcomes of Love Where We Live, Our People, Our Place and Our Promise, you will lead a broad portfolio that shapes how the municipality grows and how it feels to live in.
Your division spans the Development Services (Building, Environmental Health and Statutory Planning), Urban Strategy (Economic Development, Urban Design, Property, and Strategic Planning), Amenity Protection (Local Laws & Parking, Asset Protection, Investigations and Prosecutions) and Transport & Engineering (Traffic and Drainage) portfolios. You will join the Executive team to drive sustainable growth, liveability and place-based outcomes.
This is a leadership role at a pivotal time. Planning reform is changing the regulatory landscape, and Council wants its City Development functions better integrated, more customer-focused and more data-driven. You will lead, motivate and uplift your teams and take them through that change.

What you’ll do

- Lead long-term urban strategy, planning policy and place planning
- Oversee statutory planning and development assessment so decisions are timely, transparent and compliant
- Provide strategic oversight of compliance, local laws, asset protection and environmental health
- Lead transport planning and engineering, aligned with land use outcomes
- Drive economic development and property initiatives that support investment and activation




- Break down silos between strategic planning, development services, engineering and compliance
- Use data, insights and digital capability to lift service delivery, regulatory performance and customer experience
- Build a values-based culture where teams are engaged, accountable and high performing

About you

- Extensive senior leadership experience in a complex regulatory, planning or development environment, ideally in local government
- Proven ability to lead large, multi-disciplinary teams and to deliver transformation and service improvement in high-volume, high-risk settings
- Strong knowledge of statutory planning frameworks, local government legislation and regulatory functions
- Resilience and political acumen, with the credibility to build trust with elected officials, community, developers and government agencies, including in challenging conversations
- A clear understanding of how urban planning decisions shape the long-term management of Council’s assets
- A track record of building customer-focused cultures and balancing customer experience, compliance and organisational risk
- Tertiary qualification in planning, engineering, public policy or a related discipline. Planning qualifications or experience are highly desirable.

To apply
For a confidential discussion, contact Nick Kelly at GEM Executive, on 04•• ••• 548
Applications close Friday 27th November.
Bayside City Council is committed to diversity, equity and inclusion and to the safety of children and young people.

📌 Director City Development (Melbourne)
🏢 Gem Executive
📍 Melbourne