Planning directors transition cities for continued expansion

Planning directors transition cities for continued expansion

Written by Staff Tuesday, 07 November 2006

Duane Smith, Planning & Transportation Director, Cedar Park

Duane Smith first began working for the city in 1998 in the transportation department, after living in Cedar Park for a little more than five years. His work took him from South Texas to Washington D.C. and then back to Austin, with careers ranging from education to legislation. He moved to Cedar Park in the early 1990s and became the editor for a local newspaper, which gave him insight into the community and prepared him to work for the city, he said.

Q. What are your primary considerations when planning for the city?

A. What I consider most is the vision of Cedar Park in the future. The City Council is implanted in the Comprehensive Plan, which gives us our priority to make Cedar Park an economically viable and sustainable community. It’s the guiding discipline.

Q. What are your greatest challenges as planning director?

A. We always have new challenges to address for transportation and land use issues. We have to make sure we’re maintaining a clear vision of the city priorities, that we’re not distracted. As we near 2007, we have limits on the land left for development. We have to be doing our part to ensure the land is used in a way to fulfill the city’s priorities. You go through the stages and you have to be patient.

Q. How has Cedar Park changed since you started working for the city?

A. We went through major growth in the mid- to late-90s. We had a population of 5,000 in 1990, which went to 18,000 in the 1998 census. Then in 2000, we officially had 26,000. For 2004, the census bureau said unofficially we had 45,000. A recent update said 48,000. The challenge has been keeping up with the rapid growth of a community that has a high quality of life, a population that wants to maintain that standard and then add the resulting issues, especially transportation.

Q. Describe how you envision the city in five years?

A. Over the next five years, the community will recognize growth in the economic generators that the community envisioned years ago. People won’t drive other places for shopping and recreational purposes. Our growth is ready to generate a new economic level.

Q. At this time of year, what are you thankful for?

A. That we have a vision set forth in 1998 that the public and civic leaders follow and pursue to see Cedar Park become successful, economically viable and a great place to live and raise a family.

• Education: Graduated from Texas A&I University (now Texas A&M University at Kingsville) where he studied political science with an emphasis in local government.
• Family: Married to Lynda and has two grown children
• Contact information: smith@ci.cedar-park.tx.us; 401-5060

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Jim Bechtol, Director of Community Development, Leander

Jim Bechtol has worked for 30 years in planning. In 1999, he moved to Leander and began spending a lot of time golfing. During this time, he met people who worked with the city, which led to his first job in 2002 with Leander’s parks and recreation department. He was later promoted to Director of Community Development.

Q. What are your primary considerations when planning for the city?

A. As a planning director, you think about 20 years from now. I envision a Utopian city with low taxes and high quality of life. We want to try and get from the suburb we are now, into our own self-sustaining city. We want to make sure we protect our resources.

Q. What are your greatest challenges as planning director?

A. The greatest challenge is keeping up with all the growth. When you’re growing as fast as we are with a minimal staff, we’ve got to react quickly and keep projects coming. In the long-term, we want to keep a low tax rate and a high quality of life in Leander, which means we need development. We’re high on residency and low on commercial development and we need to get some more commercial.

Q. How has Leander changed since you started working for the city?

A. From a city operations side, we have a much more professional staff that is very strong creatively. We think outside the box and try to do what’s best, which means we are garnering trust with our customers.

Q. Describe how you envision the city in five years?

A. I want to see more parks, more open space, a vibrant downtown and hopefully major employers. It’s important we go from being a suburb to a real city.

Q. At this time of year, what are you thankful for?

A. I am thankful for my wife, my family and for the opportunity to work for a growing city like this.

• Education: Graduated from Round Rock High School; Studied at UT Arlington and Texas Tech University
• Family: Married to Amber Rose and the owner of five cats
• Contact information: jim.bechtol@ci.leander.tx.us; 528-2762