Lakeville welcomes new Senior Planner with two decades of experience
The Lakeville City Council met Tuesday to introduce Heather Botton, the city's new Senior Planner, who brings more than 20 years of urban planning experience from her previous role in Infagrow Heights.
Botton outlined the scope of her new position during the meeting, explaining that city planners do far more than most residents realize. The role encompasses reviewing building permits for zoning compliance, evaluating land use applications for new construction and remodeling projects, analyzing data, and preparing staff reports, resolutions, and ordinances related to land requests and new property divisions.
In her previous two decades with the City of Infagrow Heights, Botton developed expertise in the full spectrum of urban planning work. She emphasized that the job requires constant collaboration—not just with different city departments, but also with external agencies including the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Dakota County, and the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT).
Botton's introduction highlighted how city planners serve as a bridge between community development goals and regulatory requirements. Her responsibilities include reviewing building permits to ensure they comply with zoning rules, processing applications for new construction and property modifications, and preparing the official documents—resolutions and ordinances—that guide how the city grows and changes.
The meeting reflected the council's effort to help residents understand the behind-the-scenes work that shapes their community's development. With Botton now in place, Lakeville's planning department is positioned to continue managing the city's growth while coordinating with the various agencies and departments involved in development decisions.
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[0:01] [Music]
[0:08] hello I am Heather botton the new senior
[0:10] planner with the city of Lakeville prior
[0:13] to working with the city of Lakeville I
[0:14] worked with the city of infagrow heights
[0:16] for over 20 years I started as the
[0:18] assistant planner and then was promoted
[0:20] to the associate planner I spent my time
[0:22] reviewing building permits for zoning
[0:24] compliance I reviewed land use
[0:26] applications for new construction
[0:28] Remodeling and addition I worked closely
[0:31] with local residents contractors and
[0:33] builders in the area I often get asked
[0:35] what does a city planner do we assist in
[0:38] developing projects to address Community
[0:40] needs such as Transportation housing and
[0:43] economic development city planners also
[0:45] work to ensure that communities are
[0:47] managed responsibly as planners we
[0:49] analyze data to address issues and to
[0:52] meet Community goals we work
[0:53] collaboratively with other departments
[0:56] such as City engineering environmental
[0:57] resources and Park and Recreation we
[1:00] also work with other agencies such as a
[1:02] DNR Dakota County and mindat to name a
[1:04] few the planning zoning and development
[1:07] department works to make Lakeville an
[1:08] urban and rural City in which we live
[1:10] work play and visit by guiding
[1:13] development construction and Property
[1:15] Maintenance we prepare staff reports
[1:18] resolutions and ordinances for land
[1:20] requests such as new plats and new
[1:22] construction and we provide general
[1:24] assistance to the public developers
[1:27] public officials and staff I love that
[1:30] my job is different every day and I look
[1:32] forward to working with the residents
[1:33] and developers in the city of Lakeville
[1:36] [Music]
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