Land Use & Zoning Attorney: Helps developers, neighbors, and cities with legal fights over what can be built where. Typical pay $150k.
Redevelopment Project Manager: Turns empty lots, old factories, or rail yards into new neighborhoods through public-private partnerships. Typical pay $120k.
Smart City Program Manager: Brings technology like sensors, data, and apps into city services such as traffic lights and trash pickup. Typical pay $125k.
Mid pay: solid pay, degree or apprenticeship
Urban Planner: Plans how land in cities and towns should be used for housing, parks, roads, and businesses. Typical pay $84k.
Transportation Planner: Plans roads, transit, bike lanes, and sidewalks so people can get around safely and efficiently. Typical pay $88k.
Transit Service Planner: Designs bus and train routes and schedules so transit gets people where they need to go. Typical pay $80k.
Environmental Planner: Studies how new projects affect wildlife, water, and air, and plans ways to protect nature. Typical pay $80k.
Urban Designer: Designs how streets, plazas, and neighborhoods look and feel for the people using them. Typical pay $90k.
Historic Preservation Planner: Protects historic buildings and neighborhoods by reviewing changes and documenting history. Typical pay $72k.
Zoning Administrator: Interprets and enforces a town's zoning rules about what can be built where. Typical pay $78k.
Housing Policy Planner: Develops programs and plans to create affordable housing. Typical pay $80k.
Community Development Specialist: Manages programs that improve struggling neighborhoods, like housing repairs and small-business grants. Typical pay $65k.
Government GIS Analyst: Makes maps and analyzes location data for city planning, emergency response, and public services. Typical pay $75k.
Land Bank Program Manager: Runs a public "land bank" that takes over abandoned houses and empty lots and turns them into homes, gardens, or businesses. Typical pay $80k.
Permit Expediter: Guides builders and homeowners through city permitting, making sure applications are complete and pushing them through approval. Typical pay $55k.
Parking & Curb Management Planner: Plans how a city uses curbs and parking: delivery zones, bike lanes, rideshare pickups, and meters. Typical pay $82k.
Community Engagement Planner: Makes sure residents get a real say in city plans by running meetings, surveys, pop-up events, and online engagement. Typical pay $72k.
Transportation Demand Management Coordinator: Gets people out of solo car trips by running carpool matching, transit passes, bike programs and parking rules for a city or big employer. Typical pay $68k.
Night Mayor / Nightlife Director: A city official who runs the 'after dark' city: keeping bars, music venues and night workers thriving while handling noise and safety. Typical pay $100k.
Farmland Preservation Administrator: Runs a county program that pays farmers to give up the right to ever develop their land, keeping farms from turning into subdivisions. Typical pay $70k.
Starter: fastest way in
Planning Technician: Helps residents and builders at the permit counter and supports planners with research and mapping. Typical pay $52k.
GIS Technician: Updates digital maps and enters location data for government agencies. Typical pay $50k.
Planning Commission Secretary: Organizes planning commission meetings, records decisions, and posts public notices. Typical pay $47k.
Housing Quality Inspector: Inspects apartments rented with housing vouchers or under rental ordinances to make sure they are safe and livable. Typical pay $50k.
Traffic Count Technician: Collects data on how many cars, bikes, and people use roads and intersections so planners can design them better. Typical pay $42k.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.