The Colorado Springs City Council unanimously approved Kevin Walker as the city’s next planning director to help guide the city’s growth.

Walker has been serving as the interim planning director since June, shortly after previous director Peter Wysocki was asked to resign.

Mayor Yemi Mobolade briefly appeared during Tuesday morning’s council meeting to present Walker for final approval by the council. Mobolade said that Walker was the unanimous director recommendation from the hiring committee after a nationwide search.

The council members who had personal interviews with Walker in the weeks before the vote shared positive feedback. Council members said they didn’t agree with all of his ideas but were impressed by his historical knowledge and interim work over the last four months.

“If something was at City Council 25 years ago, he probably has some information about that. And that longevity of being engaged and knowing our city as it has grown and developed … I just have huge confidence in him,” David Leinweber said.

The only questions raised about Walker were about his history with private development. Walker was a vice president for Norwood Development Group and later started his own company Walker Schooler District Managers, or WSDM, 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 , city spokesman Max D’Onofrio said in previous Gazette reporting.

Walker said his job does not set the big-picture goals for the city’s plans and will focus on the daily functions of the planning process.

“I don’t see the position as one where I have extraordinary powers. I simply see it as one where I can steer and allow the community to speak,” Walker said.

The proposed budget shows Walker will oversee a $8.1 million budget for the planning department, split between the general fund and the development review enterprise fund. The Gazette previously reported that Walker’s salary will be around $219,000 per year.