Public Works Civil Engineer III
Listed on 2026-01-24
-
Engineering
Environmental Engineer, Civil Engineering
The County of San Luis Obispo is offering an exciting career opportunity for Engineers III to join our APWA-accredited Public Works Department, which currently has seven Engineer vacancies across five divisions:
Water Resources
, Development Services
, Design and Construction
, Water Utilities
, and Project Delivery
.
This Division manages the development of water supply and flood management technical studies, sustainability plans, and public engagement programs to understand conditions, set sustainability goals, identify solutions, and facilitate implementation.
Engineers in the Water Resources Division are responsible for leading the following efforts. Multi-disciplinary skillsets are needed, combining strong communication and collaboration skills with technical expertise and knowledge application of water-related engineering, hydrology, and regulatory concepts:
- Water Supply and Infrastructure Optimization: Developing feasibility studies and alternatives analysis for projects to optimize existing infrastructure and develop new water supplies.
- Flood and Drainage Management: Identifying current and projected drainage and flood issues and developing strategic, science-based solutions to mitigate risks under various future hydrologic scenarios.
- Initial Implementation: Leading or supporting development of cooperative agreements, governance structures, and funding mechanisms to implement identified water supply and flood management strategies.
- Technical Oversight and Consultant Management: Developing and managing scopes of work, schedules, and budgets for technical consultants; providing strategic direction to consultants and reviewing technical outputs and deliverables.
- Public Outreach and Stakeholder Engagement: Communicating findings/technical information and associated recommendations to facilitate transparent decision-making processes involving elected officials, partner agencies, regulatory and permitting entities, community groups, and members of the public.
The Water Resources Division is seeking a staff-level engineer with a passion for sustainable water management. The ideal candidate will bring technical knowledge and experience in land use-based water supply and demand analysis, groundwater and watershed modeling concepts and applications, and alternatives analysis and implementation of water supply and flood/drainage projects/programs.
The ideal candidate will also possess service-based leadership skills, such as collaborative negotiation skills, team facilitation, public speaking and engagement necessary to facilitate transparent, collaborative decision-making processes. Personal qualities like integrity, reliability, and a team-oriented, solutions-focused mindset are also essential.
Contact:
Angela Ford at 805‑781‑5139 or
Representative duties include, in addition to those listed for Engineer III:
- Conduct engineering review of development plans including drainage and flood control, water supply, wastewater disposal, and post-construction stormwater.
- Review subdivision applications, subdivision improvement plans, road widening plans, land use permits, and encroachment permits for consistency with County standards, ordinances, and policies.
- Coordinate and participate in meetings with project applicants and consulting engineers to ensure developments are reviewed appropriately and in a timely fashion.
- Conduct field inspections for the projects we are managing.
- Interact with customers face-to-face at the front counter, on the phone, and through email to answer questions and help customers process their projects.
The ideal candidates will demonstrate the following characteristics:
- Self-motivation to manage their own workload, keep projects moving forward, and improve processes;
- The ability to clearly articulate County standards and policy consistently, fairly, and with a collaborative communication style;
- A proven history of providing a high level of customer service in a responsive manner, while remaining calm under pressure;
- A desire for public service.
Contact: JR Beard at 805‑781‑4073 or
Design and Construction DivisionEngineers in the Design and Construction Division are part of a 20-person office and field staff team with roles ranging from project management, plan/spec/contract development, and construction management. The vacancy is for either an office-based design engineer tasked with designing County transportation and utility projects, or a predominantly field-based construction engineer tasked with construction management and construction administration.
The design engineer will be responsible for developing plans, producing quantity/engineer estimates and technical specifications to be included in our construction contracts. The construction engineer will be responsible for ensuring contractor compliance with the contract documents, consultant management, and compliance.
The design engineer candidate should have a high level of design experience using…
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