Town hires new PZ&B director

St. Lucie County Assistant Director of Growth Management/Building and Code Regulation Manager Robin D. Meyer has accepted the position of Longboat Key Planning, Zoning & Building director.
Meyer, 61, will assume the role May 14.

“I always try to grow my career, and this was a very unique opportunity,” he said. “It’s a beautiful community. There appeared to be a lot of unique challenges.”

Meyer was selected from an initial pool of 62 applicants, five of whom a panel interviewed April 2. He will earn an annual salary of $93,000, and his employment will include a six-month probationary period.

According to an April 13 letter offering Meyer the position, Meyer has indicated to Town Manager David Bullock that he intends to be employed by the town for a minimum of five years based on satisfactory work performance.

Bullock said that both Meyer’s experience and mannerisms stood out during interviews.

“He’s got deep experience in planning and a lot of comprehensive planning experience,” Bullock said. “He seems to be very thoughtful and steady. He knows and understands planning and has a nice mannerism with people.”

Planning & Zoning Board Chairwoman B.J. Webb, who was part of the interview panel, was impressed by the extent to which Meyer researched before the interview Longboat Key and the issues it faces.

“He is clearly someone who does his homework and, I think, will be really good for this community.”

Meyer graduated in 1974 from Western Washington University in Bellingham, Wash., with a degree in urban and regional planning and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners, according to the résumé he submitted to the town.

He began his career in planning in 1975 with the city of Tacoma, Wash., for which he served in various divisions until 2003.

He served as project coordinator of sound transit planning from April 1996 through September 1998, during which he oversaw efforts to integrate city plans and programs with all Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority projects developed within city limits, which involved the construction of a $200 million regional transit hub, six-station light-rail facility, and development of a commuter-rail line and stations.

From September 1998 through March 2003, he served as the city’s supervisor of neighborhood and transportation planning, during which he supervised all Comprehensive Plan updates and modifications, zoning code updates, neighborhood planning and transportation planning.

Meyer was the principal planner for the Collier County Department of Zoning and Land Development Review from April 2003 to May 2005 and director of planning and design for the firm of VanasseDaylor in Fort Myers from May 2005 to October 2007.

In 2007, St. Lucie County hired Meyer as assistant director of growth management, a role in which he is responsible for all county planning activities, including zoning code updates, comprehensive planning, staff administration and budget. In April 2010, he took on the additional role of building and code regulation manager, in which he is responsible for building, zoning and code regulations.

Meyer said he is proud of streamlining the permitting process in St. Lucie County, despite having revenues cut by 50% and staff reductions of more than 70%.

On Longboat Key, he will take on different challenges.

“They’re looking at issues with resorts and commercial properties and trying to find, No. 1, if they want to revitalize them, and then figuring out how they want to do that,” Meyer said. “I think there’s a lot of opportunity.”

Interim leadership
The town’s Planning, Zoning & Building Department’s director position has been vacant since Monica Simpson’s resignation Dec. 2. In the interim, Town Planner Steve Schield has overseen planning issues, and Building Official John Fernandez was handling building issues until his retirement earlier this month.
Manatee County Inspector Wayne Thorne is serving as the town’s acting building official for the next four months through an agreement between the town and county.

Simpson has continued to work for the town as an independent contractor at a rate of $97.50 per hour. The following is a monthly breakdown of the hours Simpson worked for the town between December and February. Invoices were not yet available at press time for the month of March.

Month; Hours; Compensation
December 2011; 33.75; $3,290.56
January 2012; 24.57; $2,395.50
February 2012; 10.5; $1,023.74