The Luzerne County Courthouse is seen in this file photo. Four new Luzerne County management positions were advertised Thursday as part of an engineering office restructuring.
Times Leader file photo
Four new Luzerne County management positions were advertised Thursday as part of an engineering office restructuring.
The new positions: project management director, facilities and maintenance project manager, road and bridge manager and senior project manager.
In exchange for the creation of these project oversight jobs, four engineering positions are being eliminated.
One current county engineer position is vacant, and the three remaining staff engineers were informed of the plan earlier this year and encouraged to apply for the new positions, county Manager Romilda Crocamo has said.
The position changes were factored in the 2024 budget approved by council. The salaries of the engineer positions to be cut were $55,712, $56,046, $72,543 and $78,275, according to the county’s 2023 position list.
Crocamo has said most counties this size do not have a department of staff engineers, and much of the actual project work is contracted out.
Project managers would not have to be engineers, and she has said the restructuring should improve the county’s oversight of repair projects and maintenance of county-owned buildings, roads, bridges and other infrastructure, with emphasis on meeting deadlines and cost projections.
Applications for all four are due Jan. 10. Information is posted under the human resources “career opportunities” section at luzernecounty.org.
Some details about the four new positions, based on the postings:
• Project management director
Advertised at $66,000 to $72,775 annually, this employee will manage engineering consultants and the construction/maintenance of county infrastructure.
The minimum qualifications include the educational equivalent of a bachelor’s degree program with major course work in civil, mechanical or a closely related engineering field supplemented by public administration coursework.
Administrative/operational work experience is required in engineering, property, maintenance and project management, including three years in a supervisory role.
As always, the posting states any equivalent combination of training and experience may be accepted if it provides the necessary knowledge, skills and abilities.
The county also is seeking someone with Pennsylvania Department of Transportation certification in bridge inspection and stormwater management or the ability to obtain that certification within a year.
• Senior project manager
Posted at $62,000 to $64,575, this worker will be responsible for overseeing the road/bridge and facilities/maintenance project managers and handling all facets of projects, including planning and allocating resources, preparing budgets, monitoring progress and keeping stakeholders informed.
The minimum qualifications include a bachelor’s degree in construction/project management or a related field and 2-to-5 years of related work experience that can include internships.
Applicants must be certified in bridge inspection and stormwater management or be able to obtain that certification within a year. Certification in project management is preferred.
• Facilities/maintenance project manager
This position is advertised at $58,000 to $62,525 annually and concentrates on county buildings.
County-owned structures include the historic courthouse on River Street in Wilkes-Barre and these also in the city: Bernard C. Brominski Building, North Street; Courthouse Annex, River Street; Penn Place and the human services buildings, both on Pennsylvania Avenue; the prison, parkade and Emergency Management Agency building on Water Street; and the engineering/road and bridge and prison minimum offenders building on Reichard Street. Other holdings include the 911 center and a records storage building that also houses the coroner’s office in Hanover Township and, in Forty Fort and Wyoming, the Wyoming Valley Airport, West Side Annex and former Air Reserve Center under renovation to house the county recycling department.
Minimum qualifications include a bachelor’s degree in construction/project management or an equivalent combination of acceptable training/experience related to construction and property/facility management. Also sought is 2- to 5 years of related work experience that can include internships.
• Road/bridge project manager
Advertised at $58,000 to $62,525 annually, this employee will concentrate on county-owned road and bridge projects but may be assigned to other areas as needed.
Minimum qualifications include a bachelor’s degree in construction/project management or an equivalent combination of acceptable training/experience related to road/bridge construction management. The county wants 2- to 5 years of related work experience that can include internships.
Certification in bridge inspection and stormwater management is required within a year.
All four positions fall under the operational services division. Jennifer Pecora stepped away from her position as administrative services division head earlier this month to serve as interim operational services division head due to the resignation of Greg Kurtz.
Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.
