Chester County Commissioners Josh Maxwell, Marian Moskowitz, and Eric Roe have approved the appointment of Matthew Edmond as executive director of the Chester County Planning Commission. Edmond assumed his new role on Feb. 18 and replaced Brian O'Leary, who retired in November 2024. Chester County Planning Commission assistant director Carol Stauffer had been serving as acting executive director since O'Leary's retirement.

Edmond has more than 20 years of public planning experience with the Montgomery County Planning Commission, and his move to Chester County follows 10 years as transportation section manager, followed by assistant director of transportation and long-range planning. During his time at Montgomery County, Edmond served as executive leader for the county's new comprehensive plan, Montco 2050, and he served as project manager for Bike Montco, as well as the county's Aviation Policy Plan and the Montgomery County Complete Streets Policy.

For 10 years, Edmond has been executive director of the Montgomery County Transportation Authority. He is a member of the American Planning Association and the Pennsylvania Chapter of the Association. Throughout the year, he teaches Pennsylvania Municipal Planning Education Institute courses on community planning to municipal officials. He also chairs the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission's Regional Technical Committee.

In his new role, he will oversee Chester County's comprehensive plan, Landscapes3, the main purpose of which is to balance preservation of the county's open spaces, natural areas, and historic landscapes with compatible growth of the county's urban and suburban centers, providing diverse and affordable housing, and expanding public transit, pedestrian, and bicycle networks.