On July 6, 2023, Mayor Jim Kenney accepted the resignation of Deputy Mayor Anne Fadullon, the Director of the Department of Planning and Development (DPD), and named Eleanor Sharpe as Acting Director.

Fadullon will continue her role until August 23, when Sharpe will take on the position. Presently, Sharpe is the Deputy Director of DPD for Planning and Zoning, and is the Executive Director of the Philadelphia City Planning Commission (PCPC).

In 2015, voters pushed for a City Charter change that created the DPD through the merging of six entities: PCPC, Philadelphia Historical Commission, Art Commission, Development Services, Office of Housing and Community Development, and administration of the Zoning Board of Adjustment.

Mayor Kenney named Fadullon as the City's first Director of Planning and Development since the beginning of his administration, with Fadullon leading the consolidation of three quasi-public land use and affordable housing agencies into the PHDC, which operates as a full-service community development organization.

“The tireless efforts of Anne and her team have resulted in a Department of Planning and Development that is well-coordinated, high-quality, inclusive, and responsive,” said Mayor Kenney, in a statement.

“DPD’s work supported the continued strength of the development sector throughout the pandemic, and its partnership with PHDC dispersed nearly $300 million dollars to Philadelphia households to keep families in their homes. I am grateful to Anne for her service, and I wish her all the best in the next chapter of her career,” he continued.

During Fadullon's tenure, DPD divisions completed the first citywide Comprehensive Plan made in 50 years, supported numerous large development projects that had a total economic impact of more than $540 million, and recorded the production and preservation of 57,000 housing units within the City's ten-year Housing Action Plan.

Fadullon has more than 30 years of experience in the private and public sector. She earned her Bachelor's degree in Urban Studies and Economics from Lehigh university, and her Master's of City Planning from the University of Pennsylvania.

“Serving as Director of the Department of Planning and Development has been an honor and a joy,” said Deputy Mayor Anne Fadullon. 

“Each and every member of the Planning and Development team brings the best of themselves to the work and I am continually amazed by all that has been accomplished through their efforts. It will be difficult to leave this incredible community, but it helps to know that I am leaving DPD in Eleanor’s good hands,” she continued.

Sharpe will be stepping in after Fadullon’s departure. 

In Sharpe's current role, she led the development of Planning and Equity: A Commitment to Change, which was a pledge to acknowledge and amend the damage that planning institutions have caused to diverse communities.

To date, the planning directors of 36 cities and counties nationwide have signed the pledge, as well.

Prior to her current dual appointment, she served as PCPC's Deputy Executive Director, Director of Planning for the City of New Rochelle, and Associate Director of the Netter Center for Community Partnerships at the University of Pennsylvania.

Following Sharpe’s departure from her role, her successor, Martha Cross, will be promoted from her current position of Deputy Director of the Division of Planning and Zoning within the DPD to take on new additional responsibilities.