Job Description

Senior Project Planner

Position Title: Senior Project Planner
Location: Point Reyes Station office 2-3 days per week
Employment Type: Full Time, Exempt (40 hours a week)

Reports To: Director of Operations, CLAM
Start Date: TBD

Compensation and Benefits: $115,000-$130,000 annual salary plus comprehensive benefits including health care, 3% retirement match, and generous paid time off.

Position Overview

The Senior Project Planner manages the front-end of the property development pipeline—from opportunity identification through acquisition, pre-development, and entitlements. This pivotal role shapes the future of affordable housing in West Marin's rural communities. Reporting to CLAM's Director of Properties, this position focuses on pre-construction phases, with other team members handling construction and lease-up. The position serves as a critical liaison with the County of Marin to establish streamlined permitting pathways. The ideal candidate will thrive in a collaborative environment where creativity, analytical thinking, and relationship-building skills create contextual housing solutions for our local workforce, families, and seniors.

Key Responsibilities

  • Interim Housing Management: Work with CLAM’s Director of Properties to plan for the transition of currently displaced ranchworker families from emergency housing to permanent housing.

  • Project Evaluation & Acquisition: Identify opportunities, conduct feasibility studies, develop acquisition strategies, and provide analysis for board decisions. Create pathways for complex rural properties to become viable affordable housing.

  • Pipeline Management: Maintain shared pipeline documents, track milestones, and navigate Marin County and Coastal Commission entitlement processes. Ensure projects move efficiently from concept to construction-ready status.

  • County Liaison & Permitting: Serve as primary point of contact for Marin County's Planning Department, Environmental Health Services and Community Development Agency. Foster relationships that streamline permitting.

  • Community Rentals Program: Help launch and develop strategy for CLAM’s Community Rentals program. Shape innovative approaches to increase affordable rental opportunities through partnerships with property owners and employers.

  • Financial Analysis: Develop pro formas with financial specialists, create development budgets, analyze funding sources, and ensure project feasibility. Balance innovation with sustainability.

  • Stakeholder Collaboration: Build relationships with developers, brokers, construction managers, financial experts, septic engineers and officials to advance projects. Connect technical experts with community stakeholders.

  • Regional Initiatives: Support WMHC and the Coalition for Housing All Workers and Their Families (CHAWTF) initiatives, implement the local housing action study recommendations, inform community engagement, set expectations.

Required Qualifications

  • Bachelor's in planning, real estate, community development, finance, or related field

  • Five years experience in affordable housing or community development

  • Demonstrated experience evaluating acquisition opportunities and feasibility

  • Strong project pipeline management and pro forma development skills

  • Experience with entitlement processes and pre-development planning

  • Proficiency with Microsoft Office and Google Drive

  • Excellent communication skills

  • Ability to work in Point Reyes Station office 2-3 days per week

Preferred Qualifications

  • Master's degree in planning, real estate development, or related field

  • Knowledge of rural affordable housing challenges and solutions

  • Experience with multi-organizational collaboratives

  • Experience with Community Land Trusts and small-scale rural projects (1-20 units)

  • Familiarity with Marin County, California Coastal Commission, and Bay Area processes

  • Necessary knowledge and experience to navigate the local regulatory landscape effectively

  • Experience with agricultural worker housing and/or tax credit projects

  • Experience with Slack and Asana communications and project management

  • Spanish proficiency

Application Process

Send your cover letter and resume to Leah Fritts Vitali, Director of Operations, at jobs@clam-ptreyes.org by November 1st, 2025.

Work Environment and Benefits

This position offers meaningful impact while working in the stunning coastal landscape of West Marin. Split your time between office, remote work, and site visits throughout breathtaking natural settings—from Pacific coastline to pastoral valleys and charming towns. Work under CLAM's supervision while also serving the entire West Marin Housing Collaborative (Stinson Beach, Bolinas, Point Reyes, Inverness, and San Geronimo Valley), making a tangible difference in communities where housing solutions are critically needed. Your work will help preserve socioeconomic diversity by creating housing opportunities for essential workers and longtime residents.

About CLAM

Community Land Trust Association of West Marin is dedicated to affordable housing in rural Marin County. Our portfolio includes single-family preservation, multifamily developments, ADUs, agricultural worker housing, innovative ownership models. We partner with established developers like Habitat for Humanity and Eden Housing for production and we receive financial support from our members, major donors, The County of Marin, Marin Community Foundation and West Marin Fund. Our collaborative approach with other West Marin Land Trusts maximizes affordable housing impact across the region.

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CLAM is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, or gender identity), national origin, age, disability, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected under applicable federal, state, or local law. We are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace. We strongly encourage candidates who represent the diversity of the communities we serve to apply.

Frequently cited statistics show that women and people of color, as well as other structurally marginalized groups, apply to jobs only if they meet 100% of the qualifications. CLAM encourages you to break that statistic and to apply! No one ever meets 100% of the qualifications. We look forward to your application.