Ascension is seeking a high-performing Senior Planner to lead and support complex transportation and land use planning initiatives that directly impact community development, infrastructure investment, and regional mobility outcomes. This role is critical to delivering high-quality, data-informed planning solutions that align with client strategic goals, regulatory requirements, and long-term economic development objectives.

The ideal candidate brings a strong blend of technical planning expertise, analytical capability, and stakeholder engagement experience, with the ability to operate both independently and within multidisciplinary teams. This individual will play a key role in executing major transportation studies, shaping planning strategies, and delivering actionable insights that drive decision-making.

This position is essential to ensuring that planning efforts are not just compliant, but strategically aligned, analytically sound, and implementation-ready, reinforcing Ascension’s commitment to delivering measurable impact and low-risk execution to our clients.

Summary of the Role

The Senior Planner performs advanced-level transportation and land use planning work, supporting large-scale studies and program initiatives under the direction of the Project Manager or Principal Planner. The role requires expertise across multiple planning domains, including transportation systems, land use integration, economic analysis, and infrastructure planning.

The ideal candidate is:

• A detail-oriented and strategic thinker capable of translating complex data into clear planning recommendations
• Self-driven, able to operate effectively in fast-paced and sometimes ambiguous environments
• Skilled in anticipating risks, identifying solutions, and managing competing priorities
• Comfortable engaging with stakeholders and presenting findings to technical and non-technical audiences

The Senior Planner will leverage tools such as GIS platforms, transportation modeling tools, data analytics platforms (e.g., Excel, Power BI), and planning frameworks to develop studies, reports, and recommendations.

This role directly supports client needs in:

• Transportation planning and corridor studies
• Land use and development planning
• Traffic and economic analysis
• Policy and strategic planning
• Infrastructure investment prioritization

Day-to-Day Responsibilities

• Lead technical components of transportation and land use planning studies
• Conduct transportation system analysis, traffic studies, and mobility assessments
• Develop land use scenarios and evaluate impacts on infrastructure and community outcomes
• Perform economic feasibility and cost-benefit analyses for planning initiatives
• Analyze demographic, environmental, and transportation datasets to inform planning decisions
• Prepare technical reports, planning documents, and client deliverables
• Coordinate with project managers, engineers, and stakeholders to ensure alignment across workstreams
• Facilitate stakeholder meetings, workshops, and public engagement sessions
• Support development of strategic plans, policy recommendations, and implementation roadmaps
• Evaluate risks, constraints, and opportunities related to transportation investments
• Apply GIS tools and visualization platforms to communicate planning outcomes
• Ensure compliance with federal, state, and local planning regulations and standards