Senior Engineer; CIP Drainage - Hydrology & Hydraulic

The Position

With supervisor approval, incumbents may be eligible for intermittent remote work; however, they must physically reside within the Sacramento region or have the ability to regularly report to a City of Sacramento physical worksite with little notice. The City of Sacramento, Department of Utilities is seeking a motivated and detail-oriented Senior Hydraulic Modeling Engineer to support the planning, analysis, and design of drainage infrastructure projects.

The position will be responsible for developing, calibrating, and analyzing hydraulic and hydrologic models to assess system performance, support design recommendations, and meet regulatory requirements. This position provides technical review and approval of drainage studies related to development and inter-agency/department projects. Additional responsibilities include the selection and management of consultant modeling support and direct supervision of less experienced team members.

The ideal candidate will be an experienced and detail-oriented professional, with a deep understanding of drainage systems and hydraulic modeling techniques. They will be proficient in industry-standard modeling software such as XPSWMM, Info Works ICM, PCSWMM, HEC-RAS, or EPASWMM, and have a strong foundation in Geographic Information System (GIS) integration. They will have hands-on experience managing complex modeling projects, interpreting results for technical and non-technical stakeholders, and supporting regulatory compliance, capital planning, or climate resilience strategies.

They will be comfortable leading modeling efforts, mentoring junior staff, and communicating complex hydraulic concepts.

Under general direction, the Senior Engineer participates in the conduct of complicated civil, structural, electrical, or mechanical engineering planning, design, construction, maintenance/operation, plan review, assessment, and regulatory activities; develops plans; inspects sites and assists in problem resolution; coordinates engineering related activities with other City departments and outside agencies; conducts engineering planning studies; conducts plan reviews; and prepares grant applications.

This advanced journey-level class is populated with multiple incumbents. Senior Engineers perform the most complex professional civil, structural, electrical, or mechanical engineering work requiring a substantial level of professional training. Incumbents may also lead professional and technical personnel on a team or project basis. Assignments require the exercise of independent judgment and initiative in scheduling, assigning, and coordinating work with that of other units, referring only unusual or highly-complex problems.

Senior Engineer is distinguished from Supervising Engineer in that the latter manages broad professional engineering categories, such as electrical, mechanical, civil, structural, environmental, traffic, water, drainage, wastewater, or sanitation. The classification of Senior Engineer is distinguished from that of Associate Civil Engineer in that the former serves as project or team leader and performs the most complex and highly skilled engineering work while the latter is the journey level in the registered engineer series.

General direction is provided by higher level licensed professional staff. Incumbents may oversee a project team consisting of professional and technical personnel staff assigned to a project. Responsibilities may include direct or technical supervision of lower level personnel.

The following duties are typical for this classification. Incumbents may not perform all the listed duties and/or may be required to perform related duties as needed:

• Develop plans and estimates work orders for the construction of public works and capital improvement projects and programs (including public buildings, transportation infrastructure, public spaces, and public services); inspects project sites; assists in solution of difficult engineering problems; interprets specifications and City policy; makes change orders.
• Participates in the selection and management of consultant engineers for the…