The rapidly growing city of Colorado Springs expects its interim planning director, Kevin Walker, will lead the critical department long term.

Walker took over the department on an interim basis in June after the city of Colorado Springs’ long-time Planning Director Peter Wysocki resigned.

Wysocki, with the city almost 12 years, was asked to resign after several public-notification mistakes surrounding meetings that led the Colorado Springs City Council to delay decisions on high-profile projects, The Gazette reported previously.

A severance agreement obtained by The Gazette shows Wysocki was placed on administrative leave with pay in June for a month. He also received 26 weeks of severance pay. At the time, Wysocki was earning $103.72 an hour or about $214,240 a year.

Mayor Yemi Mobolade said in a news release Walker has proven to be an effective leader in recent months.

“We are excited to add Kevin’s experience and expertise to our City team,” he said.

Walker is the former owner of WSDM, previously Walker Schooler District Managers, a company that manages more than 50 special districts, associations, authorities and small water companies all over the region, according to its website. He sold his interest in the company in July after a two-year process, city spokesman Max D’Onofrio said.

The city’s planning department oversees special districts in a high-level way. Some special districts must submit their budgets to the city for approval and the City Council must approve plans for special districts and caps on their debt. The city has more than 100 special districts. Many of them are metro districts that collect property taxes to pay off infrastructure.

Walker previously worked for the city has a planner from 1979 to 1982 and later worked for Norwood Development Group from 2004 to 2010 before starting his own company.

The planning department has made changes to prevent the errors in public notification that led to Wysocki’s departure. Some of those changes began before Walker started, but the implementation continued under him, D’Onofrio said.

The department is exploring new technology to help fill notices to reduce the chance of human error, he said.

Walker is taking over at a time when the city has seen numerous contentious developments, including unpopular apartment complexes and the new 8,000-seat, outdoor Ford Amphitheater, which has generated hundreds of complaints and a lawsuit.

The planning department has gone through other changes this year because Neighborhood Services, the department in charge of code enforcement, is moving to public works. The planning director currently oversees 69 people.

The budget shows Walker will oversee 30 people in planning with a budget of $4.1 million. His recommended salary is $219,980, D’Onofrio said.

The City Council must still approve Walker’s selection and his salary.