
Fire Facility Project Specialist
Job Description
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 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.
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
DESIRED
- Bachelor's degree in Engineering or a related field.
- Registration as a Professional Engineer.
- Five (5) years of construction contract management experience (institutional, commercial, or industrial.
- Experience managing projects with construction values up to $200,000.
- Experience overseeing multiple contracts concurrently.
Facility Project Specialist is represented by the Ventura Employees Association (VEA) and is not eligible for overtime compensation.
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
Opening Date: Thursday, June 18, 2026
Closing Date: Friday, July 10, 2026, at 5:00 p.m.
Application Review: Tentatively scheduled for the week of July 13th
Duties may include but are not limited to the following:- Plan, organize, coordinate and administer facilities design and complex construction engineering projects with various entities;
- Secure necessary permits which may include conditional use permits, environmental impact statements, and building permits;
- Communicate with customers, consultants, regulatory agencies, and presentations at Board meetings and/or Commission hearings;
- Obtain and evaluate proposal from contractors and other vendors on construction projects;
- Use Fire standards for job contracting procedures including appropriate software to document activities and progress;
- Ensure vendor/contractor compliance with all safety and code regulations;
- Provide other customer service and coordination as required;
- Arrange for contractors' access and on-site coordination to minimize disruptive impact while working at County/Fire facilities;
- Performs other related duties as required.
EDUCATION, TRAINING, AND EXPERIENCE
Considerable experience performing construction project management which has led to the acquisition of the required knowledge, skills and abilities. The required knowledge, skills and abilities can also be obtained by completion of a Bachelor's degree in engineering or a related field and two (2) years project management experience of construction projects with construction values over $25,000.
NECESSARY SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS
- The position is required to participate in after hours on-call services on a rotating basis with other staff dedicated to fire facilities and will be compensated accordingly at union negotiated rates.
- Must possess and maintain a current valid California driver's license.
Thorough to comprehensive knowledge of current principles of construction engineering and their application to engineering problems. Comprehensive knowledge of one of the engineering disciplines, mechanical, electrical, civil, structural, etc. or architectural; modern methods, materials and equipment used in the construction of buildings, building remodels, sewer systems, air-conditioning systems, asphalt, concrete, fire/life/safety systems, climate control systems, security systems, and computer system application. Working knowledge of common office environment software sufficient to produce required reports and other materials.
Skilled in common office software sufficient to produce required reports, exhibits and other materials.
Ability to prepare engineering studies, recommend solutions, prepare reports and make recommendations for the planning of work; write technical reports; manage and coordinate work of outside consultants and contractors; inspect plans and methods of construction; estimate cost of construction projects; use good engineering judgment in development, evaluation, selection, and implementation of both agency and contract resources to get the work done; practice effective customer service; manage a large workload while remaining flexible in response to project changes and deadlines; resolve conflicts and problems in a creative and positive way; communicate effectively both verbally and in writing; develop and maintain productive, professional and respectful relationships with employees, management, and outside consultants and vendors; read, interpret and direct activities based on construction drawings and specifications.
FINAL FILING DATE: Your application must be received by County of Ventura Human Resources no later than 5:00 p.m. on Friday, July 10, 2026.
To apply online, please refer to our website at http://www.venturacounty.gov/jobs. If you prefer to fill out a paper application form, please call (805) 654-5129 for application materials and submit them to County of Ventura Human Resources, 800 South Victoria Avenue, L-1970, Ventura, CA 93009.
NOTE: If presently permanently employed in another "merit" or "civil service" public agency/entity in the same or substantively similar position as is advertised, and if appointed to that position by successful performance in a "merit" or "civil service" style examination, then appointment by "Lateral Transfer" may be possible. If interested, please click here (Download PDF reader) for additional information.
Note to Applicants: It is essential that you complete all sections of your application and supplemental questionnaire thoroughly and accurately to demonstrate your qualifications. A resume and/or other related documents may be attached to supplement the information in your application and supplemental questionnaire; however, it/they may not be submitted in lieu of the application.
SUPPLEMENTAL QUESTIONNAIRE – qualifying
All applicants are required to complete and submit the questionnaire for this examination AT THE TIME OF FILING. The supplemental questionnaire may be used throughout the exam process to assist in determining each applicant's qualifications and acceptability for the position. Failure to complete and submit the questionnaire may result in the application being removed from consideration.
APPLICATION EVALUATION – qualifying
All applications will be reviewed to determine whether or not the stated requirements are met. Those individuals meeting the stated requirements will be invited to continue to the next step in the screening and selection process.
TRAINING & EXPERIENCE EVALUATION
A Training and Experience Evaluation (T&E) is a structured evaluation of the job application materials submitted by a candidate, including the written responses to the supplemental questionnaire. The T&E is NOT a determination of whether the candidate meets the stated requirements; rather, the T&E is one method for determining who is better qualified among those who have shown that they meet the stated requirements. In a T&E, applications are either scored or rank ordered according to criteria that most closely align with the department’s business. Candidates are typically scored/ranked relative to one another; consequently, when the pool of candidates is exceptionally strong, many qualified candidates may receive moderate or even low scores or ranks, resulting in them not being advanced in the process.
NOTE: The selection process will likely include an Oral Exam, which may be preceded or replaced by a score from a Training and Experience Evaluation (T&E), depending on the size and quality of the candidate pool. In a typical T&E, your training and experience are evaluated in relation to the background, experience and factors identified for successful job performance during a job analysis. For this reason, it is recommended that your application materials clearly show your relevant background and specialized knowledge, skills, and abilities. It is also highly recommended that the supplemental questions within the application are completed with care and diligence. Responses such as "See Resume" or "Refer to Resume" are not acceptable and may disqualify an applicant from further evaluation.
ORAL EXAMINATION – 100%
A job-related oral examination will be conducted to evaluate and compare participating candidates' knowledge, skills, and abilities in relation to those factors which job analysis has determined to be essential for successful performance of the job.Candidates must earn a score of seventy percent (70%) or higher to qualify for placement on the eligible list.
If there are three (3) or fewer qualified applicants, an oral examination will not be conducted. Instead, a score of seventy percent (70%) will be assigned to each application, and each applicant will be placed on the eligible list.
ELIGIBLE LIST
The eligible list established through this recruitment will be used to fill current and future Regular, (Temporary, and Fixed-term), Extra Help and Intermittent vacancies for this and similar positions only. There is currently one (1) Regular vacancy within the Ventura County Fire Department.
Applicants successfully completing the examination process may be placed on an eligible list for up to a period of one (1) year.
BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION
A thorough pre-employment, post offer background investigation which may include inquiry into past employment, credit, education, criminal background information, and driving record may be required for this position.
EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY
The County of Ventura is an equal opportunity employer to all, regardless of age, ancestry, color, disability (mental and physical), exercising the right to family care and medical leave, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, military or veteran status, national origin, political affiliation, race, religious creed, sex (includes pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, and related medical conditions), and sexual orientation.
For further information about this recruitment, please contact Jeff Weaver by e-mail at [email protected].