Job Summary

The Senior Urban Designer leads the delivery of urban development and urban regeneration for medium complexity projects. He works closely with a multi-disciplinary team to develop graphic deliverables, including 3D views, animations, maps, sections, plans and sketches, reflecting the urban planning and design principles, considering natural, social, economic and built environment characteristics, as well as the specific cultural, political, institutional and administrative contexts of the respective urban design projects. The jobholder has a key role in coordination between different specialists and design disciplines on urban design projects, such as architecture, road, landscaping, geotechnical, water & environment, power, telecommunication, etc. He shall stay abreast of the latest trends and developments in the urban design field and represent the firm in the professional engineering and planning community, as needed.

Key Responsibilities

• Work closely with Specialists on market and socio-economic surveys and on developing preliminary feasibility and benchmarking studies for medium complexity projects
• Investigate the project’s legal, institutional and cadastral framework, as needed
• Support site analysis, including land use, infrastructure networks, morphology, views, density, site accessibility
• Support site natural environment analysis, including topography, hydrology, soil, geotechnical, meteorology, etc.
• Support preliminary transportation analysis, including accessibility, traffic impact, pedestrian mobility, parking, etc.
• Support with identification of project development constraints and opportunities based on conducted analyses.
• Develop detailed reports and presentations outlining site analyses and project program and participate with Project Managers in client presentations and workshops for medium complexity projects, as needed.
• Develop conceptual design alternatives, including conceptual land use, transportation, morphology, road design, parcelation strategy, green network design, water and sewage networks, power and telecom networks for medium complexity projects.
• Develop comparative analysis between proposed design alternatives and prepare reports outlining the comparative impact and SWOT analysis of design alternatives, and refine selected design alternatives for medium complexity projects.
• Coordinate the development of road designs and traffic impact studies with transportation teams.
• Coordinate the design of wet utilities, power supply and telecom networks with respective teams.
• Work closely with Specialists on the development of Environmental Impact Studies, as needed.
• Work closely with Specialists on final statistical analyses, financial analyses and feasibility studies.
• Refine the approved master plan, including coordinating parcelation, road designs, wet utilities networks, power and street lighting networks, landscape design, etc. for medium complexity projects.
• Develop final detailed reports, and provide input for the development of infrastructure and landscape specifications and BOQs for medium complexity projects, as needed.
• Guide the production of final 3D views, animations and other marketing materials, as needed.
• Produce detailed development briefs at a plot and zoning scale.
• Identify anchor projects, and coordinate with Architecture teams for the integration of design details, as needed.
• Develop implementation strategy, including phasing plans, as per financial and technical consideration.
• Review and understand the full scope of work, project schedule, and work breakdown structure.
• Lead the design visioning and conceptual development of master plans and urban design strategies.
• Coordinate urban design concepts with contextual and spatial analysis including land use, mobility, public realm, and environmental factors.
• Translate development principles and planning policies into high-quality design outputs.
• Support the preparation of presentations, participate in design reviews, and respond to client comments and authority feedback.
• Undertake QA/QC of project deliverables, ensuring adherence to company standards and processes.
• At senior levels - mentor and support junior designers in design development and production tasks.

Qualification & Experience

• Bachelor’s Degree in Architecture, Urban Planning or Landscape Architecture
• Master’s Degree in Urban Planning or Urban Design
• 8-16years of relevant experience in urban planning / urban design, with significant exposure to large-scale master planning and mixed-use developments.
• Solid understanding of urban design principles, public realm design, and development regulations (as applicable).
• Strong software skills (AutoCAD, Adobe Suite, SketchUp, GIS).
• Proven ability to manage junior team members and coordinate across disciplines are required at senior levels.
• Strong presentation, writing, and communication skills.
• Ability to work under tight timelines and handle multi-tasking roles at senior levels.
• Experience in GCC projects and working with authorities is a plus.
• Deep knowledge of all urban design principles.
• Good analytical and problem solving skills.
• Good communication and presentation skills.
• Strong interpersonal skills.
• Good organization skills.
• Proficiency in written and spoken English; Arabic is an advantage.