Engineer II- Housing Repair Project Manager

Housing Repair Project Manager (Engineer II)

King County's Department of Community and Human Services (DCHS) provides equitable opportunities for people to be healthy, happy, and connected to community.

Are you passionate about community development, housing rehabilitation, and social justice? Do you enjoy working collaboratively to bring this vision to life? Would you enjoy working with homeowners and tenants to bring rehabilitation project to fruition? Can you move quickly between big picture vision and project-level details? If so, King County's Department of Community and Human Services (OCHS) is looking for you!

OCHS provides equitable opportunities for people to be healthy, happy, and connected to community. We manage a wide range of programs and services to assist the county's most vulnerable residents. The department maintains a pro-equity focus aimed at developing the systems and standards necessary to achieve better outcomes for all county residents, regardless of race, gender identity or income.

The Housing and Community Development (HCD) Division of OCHS seeks a skilled Housing Repair Project Manager (Engineer II) to provide information and technical assistance to low-income homeowners, special needs renters, and stakeholders throughout King County, who are interested in receiving funding to maintain or repair their homes. This job requires extensive home and in-person consultation, including home visits to inspect properties and assess the feasibility of repair projects. This job requires climbing on ladders, walking on uneven surfaces, crawling under homes, and other potentially strenuous activities. This position requires working proactively with homeowners of King County, to explore, solve and improve a wide range of home rehabilitation issues that will maintain a safe, decent, and livable home environment.

To be considered minimally qualified, applicants must demonstrate a background that provides the knowledge, skill and ability to:

• Inspect dwellings for housing quality standards, code violations and eligible repairs under the Housing Repair Program. The projects outcome is to achieve a secure, safe, and a reasonable housing unit in compliance with program standards.
• Provide technical assistance and planning expertise to the projects scope of work process. Research all applicable building codes to determine project feasibility.
• Build client credit packages that document applicants' income, assets and liabilities for program qualification requirements.
• Work to apply an equity and social justice approach to aspects of the work in partnership with team members and other division and department staff.
• Prepare written bids/proposals, develop construction specifications to facilitate the public bid process. Administer construction/rehabilitation contracts between contractor and homeowner. Resolve homeowner/contractor disputes.
• Conduct project site inspections with contractors to monitor contractor compliance. Authorize interim disbursements and contract final payments. Monitor and review budget expenditures for each individual client project.
• Conduct outreach to Housing Repair stakeholders while working across diverse communities to provide information about program and funding.
• Provide technical assistance to Housing Repair applicants and streamline the application process.
• Participate in division and department-wide meetings.
• Other duties as assigned.

We are looking for candidates who have:

• Experience managing construction projects, including monitoring compliance requirements, staying within budgeted costs, and keeping project timelines.
• Two years (24 months) of current construction-related experience in housing rehabilitation and/or general construction practices and/or residential Real Estate background, Mortgage Banking, or a financial services background.
• Demonstrated, recent experience with construction costs and labor requirements.
• General understanding and ability to interpret current building codes, mechanical HVAC, plumbing, electrical, and applicable land use requirements.
• Physical ability to conduct in-person home inspections, which may include demands such as going up and down steps and ladders as well as climbing over or crawling under or around obstacles.
• Demonstrated experience building trusted working relationships with communities of color including immigrant and refugee communities and other vulnerable populations.
• Teamwork orientation, ability to be cooperative, negotiate and compromise, and resolve issues with minimal direction.
• Strong customer service, flexible attitude and a high-level of professionalism when interacting with the public as well as staff at all levels of the organization.
• Demonstrated clear and professional-level writing for client and/or contractor communications and providing written technical assistance.
• Ability to manage time, to work on multiple tasks in high pressure/short deadline environment, and to adapt to changes in workload demand and priorities.
• Understanding of equity and social justice principles and practices and the effects of place, race, policy and systems-based inequities, and the ability to apply an equity and social justice approach to all areas of the work, including communication, technical assistance, and contract processes.
• Intermediate proficiency using Office Productivity Software- document creation, spreadsheets, presentations, and email management.

Desired qualifications:

• Familiarity with the public/private bidding process to select contractors, including experience negotiating and writing contracts.
• Two years' experience reviewing Construction related project proposals and working in partnership with applicants to fine-tune projects for funding.
• Knowledge of EPA/HUD regulations regarding lead-based paint inspections, risk assessments and clearance examinations. A State certified lead-based paint risk assessor is preferred, but not required.
• Strong facilitation and presentation skills.

Necessary special requirements:

• Possess a valid driver's license and have the ability to travel to various locations throughout King County in a timely manner.
• Ability to successfully pass a background investigation per FWAC or CW 43.43.

Additional position information:

• This position has been designated Mission Critical. Unless otherwise directed by the County Executive, department director or agency head, all employees, regardless of designation, are expected to report to work or request leave during an emergency or inclement weather. For more detailed information, please visit HR Policy County Operations During Emergency Situations and the King County Guidelines for Workforce Management in an Emergency.
• The work associated with this position will be performed or conducted through a combination of teleworking, onsite and field work and meetings. Employees will have access to shared workspaces at various King County facilities. Employees must reside in Washington state and within a reasonable distance to their King County worksite to respond to workplace reporting requirements.
• This position is exempt from the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act and is not eligible for overtime. Typical hours are Monday - Friday, 8am - 5pm.
• This position is represented by PROTEC17 (C23).

King County has a robust collection of tools and resources to support working remotely. The individuals selected for these opportunities will join an innovative and progressive team that is redefining how we work as we transition to the department's hybrid environment. Employees will be provided with a County-issued laptop and must maintain a home workspace with an internet connection where they can reliably perform work and remain available and responsive during scheduled work hours.