SACO — A second Auburn city employee will be joining Saco’s Planning and Development Department. 

The City of Saco announced on Thursday that former Auburn City Planner Zach Mosher  had been hired. Mosher will start as the Saco city planner beginning on July 2. 

Mosher replaces former City Planner Bob Hamblen, who retired on June 15 after more than 17 years of service.

In his position as planner in Auburn Mosher reviewed projects for subdivision, site plan, and local and state ordinance compliance and also served as the primary staff liaison to the Auburn Planning Board, according to a press release from the City of Saco. 

Mosher previously served as a community development specialist at the Lincoln County Regional Planning Commission in Wiscasset, providing planning and GIS assistance to the towns of Lincoln County, according to the statement. 

Mosher has a master’s degree in community planning from the Muskie School of Public Service at the University of Southern Maine, where he specialized in Geographic Information Systems and applied research and evaluation methods, according to the statement.

“I’m looking forward to joining the Planning and Development team and digging in. There are a lot of great projects in the works and I’m excited to be part of all the great things happening in Saco,” said Mosher in a written statement.

Saco’s new Planning and Development Director Denise Clavette, who was hired last month, also came to the city after serving in Auburn. While in Auburn Clavette was the assistant city manager.

Clavette said in a written statement she and her colleagues were excited to have Mosher join the team and were looking forward to his collaborative approach to planning. 

“Zach is experienced in bringing developers, city staff, and other stakeholders together to identify the strengths, issues, or concerns of an application early in the planning process. This creates an efficient, transparent, and smooth experience for all parties involved,” Clavette said.

As city planner, Mosher will be one of those responsible for fulfilling the mission of the Planning Office, which according to the Saco website, is to treat residents and applicants as customers  and to provide both prompt and efficient processing of applications and prompt attention to residents’ concerns about developments.

He will review development proposals for conformance with city regulations in conjunction with the Planning Board. He will also with work the Planning Board to modify the city’s zoning ordinance and subdivision regulations.

— Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 325 or [email protected].