Jackson Longenbaugh has always been involved in his communities, and that helped lead him to his current job as the Warsaw assistant city planner.
Longenbaugh, 22, graduated in 2022 after three years at Ball State University in Muncie. He earned his degree in geography, with a concentration in geographic information system (GIS) and a minor in urban planning.
He graduated from high school in Columbia City.
“I’ve always been really involved in my communities growing up and throughout high school and wanted to continue that into a career. And I wanted to be an architect for a very long time,” he recalled.
He had done some internships in high school, but discovered architecture maybe wasn’t the career path for him, but he was still in the architectural school at Ball State, and planning is in that same school as well.
“So I took one planning class my freshman year and I liked it, but then decided, with scheduling and stuff, it was a little too late to get into that, so, geography was close, GIS is a great skill to have for the planning world and so I just continued down that route because it was more feasible for my kind of time at Ball State,” Longenbaugh recalled.
Back in high school in Columbia City, he had been involved in the mayor’s youth council and a Whitley County youth leadership program.
“Anyway, I just liked being involved in the community, knowing what’s going on and bringing new things to that city when we could,” he said.
While he always kind of aimed for a career in planning, he kept his choices open to include economic or community development.
“Those are all fairly broad terms, so I think I was trying to figure that out a little bit, too. I think I still am, as well, so I’m just taking my first steps into this world to kind of figure that out as I grow, but this is a great place to start,” Longenbaugh said.
He started working for the city of Warsaw in August. One thing that appealed to him about the assistant city planner job was the opportunity for him to be in a new community.
“That might sound like a disadvantage, but I think it’s made me grow a lot and making new connections. I’m excited to learn about Warsaw and bring a fresh perspective. I hope to use that to my advantage when we get involved in some projects around here,” he said. “And, also, just the excitement about learning about a new place and getting a chance to insert my skills that I’ve gained from other communities and bring them here.”
As the assistant planner, Longenbaugh said many of his job duties include permits for signs, fences and smaller code-related things. He’s also a part of the Warsaw Board of Zoning Appeals where he makes recommendations from the Planning Department on whether or not variance petitions should be approved.
“We’re also kind of working on some more streetscape projects in the future that are exciting. So, I kind of like that aspect of hopefully getting to be creative, brainstorming better ideas for traffic efficiency, biking, sidewalks and even just greenspace for the city,” he said.
As for his goals, Longenbaugh said it’s always just been to be impactful wherever he is.
“I don’t think I have a set place to be or a job title I’m aiming to be. I think I just want to be impactful, make a difference but also bring new and exciting things to a community. That’s really exciting to me. I think I kind of like being or heading up new projects or being involved in new things and being able to bring my skills to the table and see things all the way through,” he stated.
In his spare time away from work, Longenbaugh enjoys hanging out with his friends and family. He also enjoys Bible study and loves music.