For Immediate Release

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Littleton selects new Community Development Director

Littleton City Manager Jim Woods announced today that Glen Van Nimwegen has been hired as the city’s new Director of Community Development. Mr. Van Nimwegen is currently serving as Planning and Community Development Director in Peoria, Arizona, a city of 154,000 residents located northwest of Phoenix. The position had been filled on an acting basis by Long Range Planner Dennis Swain since April, 2008.

“Dennis Swain has performed a great service to Littleton by filling in as Acting Director of the Community Development Department during three difficult budget years to keep the daily operations of the department running smoothly,” said City Manager Jim Woods. “Swain will return to his previous position as Long Range Planner,” Woods added.

Van Nimwegen was selected from a field of 147 candidates following a national search. In his position with Peoria, he was responsible for the completion of an update to the Peoria General Plan, which received voter approval in August, 2010; preparation of Peoria’s first multi-modal transportation plan; and completion of the Old Town Revitalization Plan that won a “Best Master Plan” award from the Arizona chapter of the American Planning Association.

Commenting on the selection, Woods said that “Glen impressed our interview panel with his knowledge of planning issues in a large urban area, where maintaining a sense of identity for the individual communities is also important. He demonstrated a good grasp of big picture trends, while recognizing that each community has its own distinct character. He will bring a broad professional experience to our great staff in Littleton.”

“I am excited to be part of the Littleton team,” Van Nimwegen said. “I was impressed during the interview process that the community has embraced being part of a dynamic urban metropolis, but refuses to be defined by it,” he added.

Prior to taking the position in Peoria, Van Nimwegen served in planning positions with three other cities in the Phoenix area. A native of Arizona, Van Nimwegen earned a B.S. in Design, Major in Urban Planning from Arizona State University, and a Masters of Public Administration with an emphasis in Urban Management and Planning, also from Arizona State. He will begin his position with the city on May 16 at an annual salary of $110,000. Van Nimwegen will be joined in Littleton by his wife Suzanne, who grew up in Salida, Colorado.