Arthur Jemison Stepping Down As Boston's Chief Of Planning
After two years as Boston's top planning official, Arthur Jemison is leaving the role to return to his home state of Michigan.
Jemison revealed his departure in a letter to staff that was sent to Bisnow by a city spokesperson and first reported by the Boston Globe.
The move comes one month after Boston Mayor Michelle Wu completed her goal of abolishing the Boston Planning & Development Agency to create a city-run planning department.
"Unfortunately, for the last two and a half years, I have been doing this job away from my family," Jemison wrote in the letter. "I have had to confront the reality that my two children are settled in their high school. I need to be more available to my family. As a result, I have decided to move back to Michigan."
Planning Department Deputy Chief Devin Quirk will step in as interim chief after Jemison's last day on Sept. 13.
Mayor Michelle Wu said in a statement she is "so grateful" for Jemison's service to the city and is confident the remainder of the planning team after his departure will "continue the momentum to make Boston a home for everyone.”
“Arthur has been an exceptional leader and partner to accomplish our shared vision for Boston’s growth—grounded in affordability, resiliency, and equity," she added. "Under his leadership and vision, we’ve achieved unprecedented progress through Article 80 Reform, Squares and Streets Plans and Zoning, comprehensive zoning reform, and restoring planning as a core function of city government."
In the two years since Jemison took on the role, he touched many parts of the city's planning and development process, including helping with the creation of the new planning department.
"When I arrived to pursue our ambitious agenda, people questioned whether project approvals would stop and staff would keep leaving," he wrote. "Now, everyone can see that the new Planning Department is strong."
In Jemison's tenure as planning chief, the department saw over 170 projects with over 40M SF of development approved in those two years, according to his letter. He said the department also approved 11,000 new units of housing with 3,790 income-restricted units.
Jemison was also a part of several reform efforts, including modernizing the large project review known as the Article 80 process as well as the Squares + Streets zoning initiative. He also helped approve four new neighborhood planning guides in Charlestown, East Boston, Mattapan and Newmarket.
This wasn't Jemison's first stint in Beantown. He worked as a planning manager for the Boston Housing Authority in the 90s and as regional manager of the Boston Redevelopment Authority between 1998 and 2000, according to his LinkedIn page.
He came back to Boston in 2022 after an 18-month stint with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and before that he spent six years working in planning roles for the City of Detroit.
UPDATE, AUG. 1, 4:45 P.M. ET: This story has been updated with a statement from Mayor Michelle Wu.
