Job Details

Engineer Positions

The County of San Luis Obispo is offering an exciting career opportunity for Engineers I and II to join our APWA-accredited Public Works Department, which currently has seven Engineer vacancies across five divisions:

Water Resources

This Division manages the development of water supply and flood management technical studies, sustainability plans, and public engagement programs in order to understand conditions, set sustainability goals, identify solutions for achieving the goals, and facilitate the initial implementation of those solutions.

Engineers in the Water Resources Division are responsible for leading the following efforts. Multi-disciplinary skillsets are needed to be successful, combining strong communication and collaboration skills with technical expertise and knowledge application of water-related engineering, hydrology, and regulatory concepts:

• Water Supply and Infrastructure Optimization: developing feasibility studies and alternatives analysis for projects to optimize existing infrastructure and develop new water supplies;
• Flood and Drainage Management: identifying current and projected drainage and flood issues and developing strategic, science-based solutions to mitigate risks under various future hydrologic scenarios;
• Initial Implementation: leading or supporting development of cooperative agreements, governance structures, and funding mechanisms to implement identified water supply and flood management strategies;
• Technical Oversight and Consultant Management: developing and managing scopes of work, schedules, and budgets for technical consultants; providing strategic direction to consultants and reviewing technical outputs and deliverables; and
• Public Outreach and Stakeholder Engagement: communicate findings/technical information and associated recommendations to facilitate transparent decision-making processes involving elected officials, partner agencies, regulatory and permitting entities, community groups, and members of the public impacted in a way that builds trust and best serves the community.

The Water Resources Division is seeking a staff-level engineer with a passion for sustainable water management to support the County's mission of achieving long-term water resource resilience. The ideal candidate will bring technical knowledge and experience in land use-based water supply and demand analysis, groundwater and watershed modeling concepts and applications, and alternatives analysis and implementation of water supply and flood/drainage projects/programs.

The ideal candidate will also possess service-based leadership skills, such as collaborative negotiation skills, team facilitation, and public speaking and engagement necessary to facilitate transparent, collaborative decision-making processes. Personal qualities like integrity, reliability, and a team-oriented, solutions-focused mindset are also essential.

Representative duties include (in addition to those listed in the description for Engineer I/II):

• Conduct engineering review of development plans including drainage and flood control, water supply, wastewater disposal, and post-construction stormwater.
• Review subdivision applications and subdivision improvement plans, road widening plans including curb, gutter, and sidewalk, land use permits, and encroachment permits for consistency with County standards, ordinances, and policies.
• Coordinate and participate in meetings with project applicants and consulting engineers to ensure developments are reviewed appropriately and in a timely fashion.
• Conduct field inspections for the projects they are managing.
• Interact with customers face-to-face at the front counter, on the phone, and through email to answer questions and help customers process their projects.

The ideal candidates will demonstrate the following characteristics:

• Self-motivation to manage their own workload, keep projects moving forward, and improving processes;
• The ability to clearly articulate County standards and policy consistently, fairly, and with a collaborative communication style;
• A proven history of providing a high level of customer service in a responsive manner, while remaining calm under pressure;
• A desire for public service.

Engineers in the Design and Construction Division are part of a 20-person office and field staff team with various roles ranging from project management, plan/spec/contract development, and construction management. This vacancy is for either an office-based design engineer tasked with designing County transportation and utility projects, or a predominantly field-based construction engineer tasked with construction management and construction administration.

The design engineer will be responsible for developing plans, producing quantity/engineers estimates and technical specifications to be included in our construction contracts. The construction engineer will be responsible for ensuring contractor compliance with the contract documents, consultant management, and compliance.

The design engineer candidate should have a high level of design experience using AutoCAD/Civil 3D, enjoy working in an office setting designing public transportation and utility projects with necessary field visits sprinkled in. The construction engineer should have a high level of construction knowledge, understanding public entity contracts, especially Caltrans, and enjoy field work.

Depending upon experience and qualification, an engineer could be utilized in either role based on work-load requirements.

The Department of Public Works has an immediate opening for a Water Systems Engineer III within its Water Utilities Division, which is responsible for the water supply management, operation, maintenance, and capital improvements of our water utility systems, including two water treatment plants, four retail water distribution systems, three water supply dams and reservoirs, and four wholesale water distribution systems.

The Water Utilities Division is seeking a staff-level engineer to support professional engineers by performing technical engineering work related to water supply planning and system operations, including reservoir operations, water treatment and distribution. Duties may include assisting with implementation of small capital improvement projects.

The ideal candidate has experience with water system hydraulics (storage, pumps, pipelines, etc.), demonstrates a strong interest in state and local water challenges, shows initiative, and values being part of a collaborative team. They bring strong analytical and decision-support skills to assist in water supply planning, system modeling, and operational analysis, along with excellent communication skills and experience preparing and presenting technical reports, correspondence, and planning documents to varied audiences.

Water Systems Engineers in the Utilities Division are responsible for:

• Providing engineering support for operation and maintenance of existing water, reservoir, and flood management infrastructure;
• Tracking water deliveries and requests, updating water system master plans, performing hydraulic modeling and capacity studies, and identifying capital improvement and financing needs;
• Conducting supply and demand analyses to support emergency exchanges, enhance resiliency, and identify opportunities for water transfers to maximize the beneficial use of the wholesale water supplies;
• Supporting stakeholder advisory committees for the County's water and reservoir systems;
• Managing water system operation and maintenance (O&M) related projects and assisting with implementation of small capital improvement projects or system planning, including coordination of consultant services, scope development, scheduling, and progress tracking.

The Transportation Project Delivery Team within the Project Delivery Division is responsible for the planning, management, programming, design, and construction of capital improvement projects for County-wide transportation infrastructure. Project Delivery staff manage and facilitate project scope, schedule, and budget to ensure the successful delivery of capital improvement projects on County-owned roads. The Teams responsibilities for transportation capital projects include:

• Project Management and Oversight: Procurement, administration, and management of Local, State, and Federal funds for Capital Improvement Projects during the planning, design, bidding and construction phases of projects. Including allocation of project staff and/or consultants.
• Project Outreach and Coordination: Project presentations/outreach to stakeholders, community advisory groups, community service districts, cities, various County divisions and departments, state/federal agencies, and funding organizations.
• Administration of Project Funding: Contract administration and coordination of local, state, and federal processes, procedures, documents, authorizations, approvals. Overall management of project funding.

The ideal candidate will have the ability to: analyze engineering problems; make viable and sound technical recommendations; prepare reports; prepare plans and specifications; coordinate and manage the work and contracts of professional, technical, or specialty consultants; work effectively and maintain positive working relationships with others, including those of diverse perspectives using interpersonal skills; communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing; operate computer systems such as Computer Aided Design and Geographic Information System or database systems; work with community stakeholders and clearly present technical information to the public and decision makers.

A combination of education, training, and experience resulting in the required knowledge, skills, and abilities. Examples of qualifying education and experience include:

Engineer I: Graduation from an accredited four-year college or university with a Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering or a closely related field; or Possession of an Engineer in Training (E.I.T.) Certificate or Land Surveyor in Training (L.S.I.T.) Certificate AND four years of paraprofessional level civil engineering, traffic engineering, or land surveying experience.

Engineer II: Graduation from an accredited four-year college or university with a Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering or a closely related field AND one year of professional level civil engineering, traffic engineering, or land surveying experience; or Possession of an Engineer in Training (E.I.T.) Certificate or Land Surveyor in Training (L.S.