Fire Facility Project Specialist

WHAT WE OFFER

The County of Ventura offers an attractive compensation and benefits package that includes:

* General Salary Increase - 3.5% effective December 20, 2026, and 3.5% effective December 19, 2027.

* Educational Incentive - An educational incentive of 2.5% for completion of an associate's degree, 3.5% for completion of a bachelor's degree, OR 5% for completion of a graduate degree.  

* Bilingual Incentive - Depending upon operational necessity and certification of skill.

* Annual Leave - 20 working days, increasing to 25 working days after 5 years of service.

* Deferred Compensation - Eligible to participate in the County's 401(k) Shared Savings Plan and/or the Section 457 Plan. This position is eligible for up to a 3% match on your 401(k) contributions.  

* Health Plans - Full time employees are afforded a flexible credit allowance for purchasing medical, dental, and/or vision insurance from a group of authorized plans:
Tier one for employee only is $667 per biweekly pay period.

* Flexible Spending Accounts - Choice of participation in the Flexible Spending Accounts which increase spending power through reimbursement of pre-tax dollars for IRS approved dependent care and health care expenses.

* Pension Plan - Both the County and employees contribute to the County's Retirement Plan and to Social Security. If eligible, reciprocity may be established with other public retirement systems, such as PERS.

* Holidays - 12 paid days per year.

THE AGENCY

The Ventura County Fire Department (VCFD) provides emergency response services throughout the County of Ventura. The cities of Oxnard and Ventura have their own fire departments. All other areas of Ventura County are serviced by the VCFD. This includes all unincorporated areas as well as the remaining 8 cities in the County (Camarillo, Thousand Oaks, Moorpark, Simi Valley, Port Hueneme, Ojai, Fillmore and Santa Paula).

To service these communities the VCFD has 33 operational fire stations as well as 12 support facilities. The County is separated into five (5) different battalions based on geographical location of fire stations and defined sectors for emergency response. Headquarters is located in Thousand Oaks, a strategic location that is optimum for access around the County to our various Facilities.

This position will oversee projects at many of the VCFD facilities.

THE POSITION

Under general supervision, this position is responsible for project management of both in-house and outsourced projects under $200,000. This includes running all aspects of a project from concept through design and permitting until completion of construction.

* Conceptual project responsibilities include working with Fire personnel to define a scope of work, preparing cost and timeline estimations, preparing project exhibits and requests for proposals (RFP).

* Project design and permitting responsibilities include assisting Fire administration staff for architect/engineer contract establishment, oversight of work and invoicing, ensuring deadlines are adhered to, and working with County and City agencies for planning and construction submittals and approvals. In addition, working with Fire purchasing staff to solicit quotes for equipment and establishing purchase orders.

* Construction responsibilities include the public bidding process, contractor selection, oversight of on-site activities, contractor and sub-contractor communication, reviewing and approving, in coordination with project architects/engineer, requests for information (RFIs), material submittals, contract change orders, and schedules, completing as-needed general site inspections, approving pay estimates, documenting progress and keeping department heads apprised of changes.

Responsible for managing several projects at once, of varying complexity, differing themes/trades, multiple or single contractors, various levels of project completion, at multiple VCFD locations throughout the County. Examples of such projects are: adding a new detached fitness building to a station, completing a bathroom remodel at a different station, landscaping a fire station site with drought tolerant plantings, adding perimeter privacy fencing to an existing support facility, erecting a communications tower, replacement of aging HVAC equipment at a station, a fire station roof replacement or upsizing a station generator.

The Project Specialist would also assist the Fire Facilities Manager with aspects of multi-million-dollar projects like design and construction of new fire stations or training facilities. The position is roughly estimated at 50:50 ratio of office-to-field work.

IDEAL CANDIDATE

The ideal candidate will demonstrate strong project team communication and coordination skills, working knowledge of contract management software and documentation, and proven ability to manage multiple contracts simultaneously. They will possess a solid technical foundation, experience in institutional, commercial, and/or industrial construction environments,…