Residence Requirements:

CANDIDATES MUST HAVE BEEN LEGAL RESIDENTS OF ERIE COUNTY FOR AT LEAST ONE MONTH IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING THE DATE OF THE WRITTEN TEST AND MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENTS OF ERIE COUNTY AT THE TIME OF APPOINTMENT. There is one anticipated vacancy at the Town of Amherst.

Preference may be given to successful candidates who have been residents of the municipality in which the appointment is to be made for one month preceding the date of the certification of the eligible list and who are residents of the municipality at the time of appointment.  Non-residents may be required to become a resident of the appointing municipality if local law so states.

A promotion examination will be held at the same time as this examination. The list resulting from the promotion examination will be used first but appointments from this open competitive examination are anticipated. Use of the list may be suspended after it is one year old for any position which it is practical to fill through a new promotion examination.

Examples of Duties:

An Associate Planner performs higher level research and analysis connected with planning projects; 

Prepares grant applications and oversees the work of consultants preparing major planning studies;

Supervises and prepares planning reports and graphics;

Determines research work needed to meet a variety of planning needs, assigns specific tasks to subordinates, performs complex analyses and prepares evaluations of results;

Represents agency at meetings, presents results of agency's work and provides technical assistance relating to planning and zoning;

Carries out specific administrative functions in the agency office;

Designs and supervises the development and operation of complex data collection programs and monitors results;

Assumes responsibility for complex planning projects, developing these in relation to the agency's overall plans and policies;

Acts as advisor to localities and other agencies in the planning aspects of their programs;

Assists in negotiating technical questions with local, State and Federal agencies;

Assists in the development of planning projects to be conducted by the agency.

Qualifications:

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:  Candidates must meet one of the following requirements on or before the date of the written test: 

A) Graduation from a regionally accredited or New York State registered four (4) year college or university with a Bachelor's Degree in urban or regional planning, public administration, environmental studies, political science, sociology, municipal government, economics, geography, architecture or landscape architecture or a related field or a Bachelor's Degree including a minimum of thirty-two (32) semester hours of courses directly related to the above fields; supplemented by four (4) years of experience in City, County or regional planning with a minimum of one (1) year of responsible supervisory experience; or:

B) Graduation from a regionally accredited or New York State registered four (4) year college or university with a Master's Degree in planning, landscape, architecture or related field, supplemented by two (2) years of experience in City, County or regional planning with a minimum of one (1) year of responsible supervisory experience; or:

C) An equivalent combination of training and experience as defined by the limits of (A), and (B).

Notes:

1. Public Administration pertains to the management of public affairs, particularly executive functions involving the management of governmental or institutional affairs. Such functions include financial, personnel, purchasing and operations management.

2. Human services, social services, health services or engineering is not considered as qualifying experience in City, County or regional planning.

3. Supervision – Responsible direction and control of subordinate employees.  This involves the assignment of work, approval of work, training, evaluation and discipline of employees.  The supervisory aspects must be an integral part of the job, not incidental or occasional. 

4. Verifiable part-time and/or volunteer experience will be pro-rated toward meeting full-time experience requirements. 

5. Your degree and/or college credit must have been awarded by a regionally accredited college or university or one recognized by the New York State Education Department as following acceptable educational practices. A grade of "D" or better is necessary for a course to be credited as successfully completed. If your degree and/or college credit was awarded by an educational institution outside of the United States and its territories, you must provide independent verification of equivalency. You can write to this Department for a list of acceptable companies providing this service; you must pay the required evaluation fee.

Notice to Candidates: Transcripts will now be accepted by the Department of Personnel ONLY at time of application.

All subsequent transcripts must be submitted at time of interview.

The New York State Department of Civil Service has not prepared a test guide for this examination. However,candidates may find information in the publication "How to take a written test" helpful in preparing for this test. This publication is available on line at: https://www.cs.ny.gov/testing/testguides.cfm

Subjects of Examination:

SUBJECTS OF EXAMINATION: A written test designed to evaluate knowledge, skills and /or abilities in the following areas:

1. Sociological, economic, design and environmental factors involved in land use planning and community development

These questions test for knowledge of the fundamental concepts, design issues, terminology and practices utilized in the land use planning field, including how to best benefit the social, economic and environmental welfare of a community using appropriate planning principles.

2. Community and regional land use planning, including zoning and subdivision regulations

These questions test for knowledge of the concepts and accepted practices involved in community and large-area development planning, the laws and regulations governing site and subdivision planning, and typical project development and zoning issues, including related legal terminology.

3. Collection, analysis and presentation of data, including basic statistics

These questions test for knowledge of the proper procedures and methods used to gather, evaluate, organize, and utilize various types of technical data and information, and the fundamental concepts, terminology, and computations involved in statistical analysis.

4. Community development program planning, including related federal and State laws and programs

These questions test for a comprehensive knowledge of the municipal and regional planning process, and familiarity with the various federal and New York State programs related to community development and the legislative regulations that authorize and fund them.

5. Computer-assisted mapping, including geographic information system (GIS) applications

These questions test for knowledge of the concepts, terminology, and proper procedures to use when creating and revising maps and site plans utilizing GIS and computerized mapping software.

6. Preparing written material

These questions test for the ability to present information clearly and accurately, and to organize paragraphs logically and comprehensibly. For some questions, you will be given information in two or three sentences followed by four restatements of the information. You must then choose the best version. For other questions, you will be given paragraphs with their sentences out of order. You must then choose, from four suggestions, the best order for the sentences.

7. Supervision

These questions test for knowledge of the principles and practices employed in planning, organizing, and controlling the activities of a work unit toward predetermined objectives. The concepts covered, usually in a situational question format, include such topics as assigning and reviewing work; evaluating performance; maintaining work standards; motivating and developing subordinates; implementing procedural change; increasing efficiency; and dealing with problems of absenteeism, morale, and discipline. 

NOTICE TO CANDIDATES: Unless otherwise noted, candidates are permitted to use quiet, hand held, solar or battery powered calculators. Devices with typewriter keyboards, "Spell Checkers", “Personal Digital Assistants", "Address Books", "Language Translators", "Dictionaries", or any similar devices are prohibited. You may not bring books or other reference materials.

**IMPORTANT APPLICATION FEE - READ CAREFULLY**

A $20.00 filing fee is required for this exam. The required fee must accompany your application. Send or bring check or money order made payable to Erie County Personnel Department and write the examination number(s) on your check or money order. Do not send or bring cash, as the County cannot be responsible for cash payment. As no refund will be made, you are urged to compare your qualifications carefully with the requirements for admission and file only for those examinations for which you are clearly qualified.