Welcome to CUPPA Careers!

The College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs at UIC is the University of Illinois System's home for the study of public policy and contemporary urban challenges. We are CUPPA.

In the heart of Chicago, we offer degrees in fields of study that can change your life and change the world. CUPPA students and alumni are uniquely skilled to build and transform sustainable urban neighborhoods and communities and to address the challenges presented in the 21st century. Find our more about our Bachelors, Masters, and Doctorate degrees at cuppa.uic.edu.

Follow our job postings below and our national job tweets at @CUPPACareers. For student internships and student opportunities, head to the CUPPA Student Opportunities Blog

Have a job or internship to post? Send an email with the title, location, job description, and contact information to cuppa@uic.edu

Director, Transit Oriented Development, Metro Transit/Metropolitan Council - Twin Cities, MN (St. Paul)

Metropolitan Council
Professional Area: 
Transportation Planning
Experience: 
7-10 years
Location: 
St. Paul, MN
The Metropolitan Council is the regional planning agency serving the Twin Cities seven-county metropolitan area by providing essential services to the region.  Employing approximately 3,700 employees, the Council works with local communities to provide these critical services:
  • Metro Transit bus system, light rail and commuter rail services
  • Wastewater collection and treatment
  • Community planning for future growth
  • Affordable housing opportunities for low-and moderate-income households
  • Planning and funding for regional parks and trails
Metro Transit, a division of Metropolitan Council, is the largest provider of transit service in the seven-county metropolitan area and one of the country's largest transit systems. They operate bus and rail service essential to the region's mobility and provide resources for carpooling, vanpooling and bike commuting. Metro Transit helps people get to where they're going, makes a dent in the region's ever-growing congestion and promotes a cleaner environment. 
  • Metro Transit provides 95 percent of the 82 million rides annually in the Twin Cities. We are one of the country's largest transit systems.
  • Each weekday customers board Metro Transit buses and trains an average of 240,000 times. Metro Transit has a fleet of 800 buses.
  • The Blue Line (Hiawatha) light rail division opened in 2004 and consists of a fleet of 27 light-rail cars and operates on 12 miles of track, serving 23 stations from downtown Minneapolis to the Mall of America.  
  • A Green Line (Central Corridor) is in the final construction and testing phase for a scheduled mid-2014 opening.  It will link five major centers of activity in the Twin Cities region - downtown Minneapolis, the University of Minnesota, the Midway area, the state Capitol complex and downtown St. Paul.  The length of the corridor is 11 miles of exclusive right of way between downtown St. Paul and downtown Minneapolis. It will connect with the existing Blue Line at the Metrodome station and terminate at the Minneapolis multimodal station.
  • The Northstar Commuter Rail is a 40-mile transportation corridor that operates through Hennepin, Anoka, and Sherburne counties, following highway 10, which is the primary direct link between downtown Minneapolis and Big Lake, Minnesota.
We are currently seeking a strategic leader to serve as Director of the newly-created Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Office, which s/he will establish and staff.  The Director will integrate policy, real estate, transportation and land use as the Metropolitan Council’s liaison to local governments, developers and other stakeholders on TOD implementation and planning, and act as the primary facilitator of joint development opportunities on Council-owned land.  
 
The new Transit Oriented Development Office will create vibrant, transit-supportive communities and support system ridership in and around Metro Transit’s high-quality, frequent transit stops.  The TOD Office will collaborate with internal and external partners and provide the leadership, tools and real estate development expertise to deliver high-quality Transit Oriented Development projects.
 
The Metropolitan Council is a destination employer that highly values its employees.  The Council provides a highly competitive benefits package including paid time away from work, medical and dental insurance, a public pension, free Metro Transit transportation, life insurance, disability benefits and much more. 
Qualifications:
A Bachelor’s degree in public administration, urban & regional planning, real estate, business management, transportation or related field AND eight (8) years or more of progressively responsible experience in leadership or supervisory roles in project management, land use planning and/or transit oriented development with a public and/or private agency.  Five (5) of the eight (8) years of experience must include supervisory/managerial/project management experience in budget development, direct supervision, procedure development and administration of performance management systems.
Equivalency: A Master’s degree AND six (6) years or more experience as indicated in the educational and employment fields listed above OR a Juris Doctor degree with a focus in property law or related field AND five (5) years or more experience as indicated in the employment fields listed above.
The successful candidate will have demonstrated experience and expertise in real estate development and negotiation working both in and with private and public sector organizations.  A Master’s degree in public administration, urban & regional planning, real estate, business management or transportation AND/OR Juris Doctor degree with a focus in property law or related field is highly desired. 
 
TO APPLY:
Applicants must submit the Metropolitan Council’s online employment application no later than 4:30 PM on Oct. 29, 2013.  For more job information and application instructions, please refer to www.metrocouncil.org.