D.C. Planning Director Harriet Tregoning is leaving the city government to work for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the office of Mayor Vince Gray confirms.

Tregoning’s departure, first reported by DCist, comes as she nears the end of her second four-year term at the helm of the Office of Planning. Tregoning joined the administration of Mayor Adrian Fenty in 2007 and was kept on by Gray. She is resigning effective Feb. 23.

In a statement on Twitter, Tregoning expressed her appreciation for a job that’s enabled her to help reshape the city but has attracted considerable controversy. “I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to serve the citizens of D.C.,” she said. “This has been the best job ever.”

“I’d like to thank Harriet for her dedicated service to the District and its residents,” Gray said in a statement. “She has worked tirelessly to help the District grow responsibly and become a thriving, more sustainable city. In recruiting her, President Obama and Secretary Donovan have demonstrated a keen eye for talent. Although she will be missed, I look forward to working with her in her new role.”

Tregoning has led a push for changes to zoning and height limits in the city to create greater density that can accommodate the city’s population growth, and has advocated a mix of transit uses. In the process, she has won support from smart-growth advocates but drawn criticism from some drivers and residents with concerns about more development. For everything you could possibly want to know about Tregoning, read my predecessor Lydia DePillis‘ 2012 profile of her.

A call to Tregoning was not immediately returned.

Photo by Darrow Montgomery