What are the day-to-day responsibilities of a City Planner?
A typical day for me consists of meeting with residents to answer questions about their property or a project they may be interested in completing, like a new deck or a house addition. I also spend a lot of time reviewing building plans to ensure they are compliant with Tucker’s Zoning Ordinance. Overall a lot of the responsibility of a City Planner is to educate those who want to do work in Tucker about our City Codes.
How did you end up here in Tucker?
I grew up in Lilburn and, after high school, I went to Piedmont College and double majored in Art and History. The year after I graduated, I interned with Fulton County Arts & Culture and just worked several random jobs. I had a mentor at Fulton County who suggested I look into graduate programs and a few months later I was accepted to the Public Administration program at UGA. That program was tough and really pushed me out of my comfort zone, but I had two internships, one with Rockdale County and one with the City of Woodstock, that helped solidify my decision to work in local government and be a City Planner. Luckily when I graduated, Tucker took a chance on me and I love it!
What is the best part of your job?
Every day I get to figure out solutions to new challenges. That means working with residents to get them through the permitting process, meeting with developers about potential projects or with consultants to get a project completed. I enjoy that I have short-term and long-term projects to work on and that I do something a little different each day!
What work are you doing right now that the community would be interested in?
I am currently working with the Green Team to submit an application for the Atlanta Regional Commission Green Communities initiative. It’s a great opportunity to show what the City of Tucker is doing in the way of sustainability! I am also working with TSW and the Tucker-Northlake CID on Tucker’s Downtown Master Plan, a visioning document that will help shape the core of our city.
OFF THE WALL
You recently got married. How’s life as a newlywed?
It’s wonderful! Xavier and I have been together for six years, so it feels the same…but better! We are currently creating a mini-garden on our porch and hoping to rescue a dog soon!
What do you and your husband do in your free time?
We love trying new restaurants and breweries in the Atlanta area. We also enjoy planning trips together – we have Colorado and New York planned for later this year and hopefully Iceland next year!
What’s your favorite movie?
School of Rock, Elf, The Big Lebowski! It depends on the day.
What’s your go-to snack item?
Something crunchy – apples, cashews, almonds, carrots!
