Water Systems Manager

The Senior Water Systems Engineer is Forest Lawn’s senior technical authority for water resource planning, distribution and treatment system design, hydraulic modeling, asset management, capital improvement planning, and regulatory compliance. The role provides technical leadership for reliable design and development of sustainable water infrastructure; supports system operations and maintenance; and helps to manage water use across the parks. Typical projects include wells, pipelines, pump stations, pressure zones, controls, reservoirs, treatment, storage, and SCADA controls and instrumentation. The position also supervises staff and oversees consultants, contracts, and project delivery.

What You'll Be Doing

• Under direction, leads long-range master planning for potable water, recycled water, groundwater, and new supplies. Develops solutions for current and future storage, treatment, distribution, renewal, and expansion needs. Plays a key role in the development of a long-term water system Capital Improvement Program and renewal strategies. Prioritizes projects and prepares supporting justifications, engineering estimates, budgets, and schedules.
• Conducts water resource planning in collaboration with internal departments, consultants, regulatory agencies, water utilities, and other utility providers. Prepares and reviews technical reports, represents Forest Lawn’s interests in public forums, and advocates for reliable, diversified, and sustainable water supplies.
• Champions stewardship, customer service, reliability, resiliency, sustainability, innovation, and efficiency in the planning, design, operation, and renewal of Forest Lawn’s water systems.
• Develops and maintains hydraulic models used to analyze water demands, system pressures, flow capacity, storage requirements, pumping strategies, emergency supply scenarios, and water quality considerations. Uses modeling results to evaluate operational scenarios, inform operational decisions, optimize system performance and support infrastructure planning and capital improvement recommendations.
• Collaborates with utility operators to evaluate distribution system performance using SCADA data, field observations, hydraulic modeling results, and engineering analysis.
• Will establish a GIS-based water system asset inventory to support the development of an asset management program, including standards, procedures, and performance metrics. Uses ArcGIS Pro and related tools to support asset mapping, condition assessments, maintenance scheduling, risk-based prioritization, and master planning.
• Collaborates with utility operators to assess and document infrastructure conditions, remaining useful life, replacement value, and operational criticality. Evaluates vulnerabilities and operational risks and recommends maintenance, emergency response, repair, rehabilitation, replacement, and capital improvement priorities.
• Works with Construction Management, Operations, Landscape Maintenance, utility operators, consultants, and contractors to deliver projects safely and effectively. Monitors budgets, schedules, risks, and performance; coordinates startup, testing, commissioning, operational acceptance, and closeout.
• Develops scopes of work, requests for proposals, and contract documents; evaluates consultant proposals, supplier quotations, and contractor qualifications; and procures and administers professional services agreements, supplier agreements, and construction contracts in accordance with company procedures.
• Ensures design quality and constructability; develops, supervises, reviews, and, when required, stamps technical drawings, specifications, and plans. Reviews and acts on requests for information, submittals, cost proposals, schedules, test results, and change orders. Leads the technical design of water production, distribution, storage, pumping, and SCADA projects; conducts field inspections; and documents construction observations.
• Identifies water infrastructure maintenance needs. Researches methods and materials.
• Coordinates with electrical engineers on pump equipment, controls, and electrical demand loads for water system projects.
• Represents Forest Lawn before public agencies, municipalities, counties, cities, and water purveyors. Coordinates utility and regulatory activities and obtains plan-check approvals, encroachment permits, and other required authorizations for water system projects; supports applicable grant funding activities.
• Coordinates and supervises compliance, water production, permitting and other reporting and payment obligations.
• Collaborates in the collection and analysis of water-use records for all cemeteries, CIMIS evapotranspiration data and other information used in the development of water budgets, distributes monitoring reports to park leadership and senior management, and trains Operations personnel on water conservation practices.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree in Civil or Mechanical Engineering.
• Minimum fifteen (15) years of progressively responsible experience in water systems engineering.
• Demonstrated leadership in project and program management, staff supervision, consultant oversight, contract administration, or construction management.
• Experience with municipal water utilities, special districts, public agencies, engineering consulting firms, or comparable organizations is highly desirable. Knowledge of water distribution system operations, capital improvement planning, hydraulic modeling, and infrastructure asset management preferred.
• Valid California Driver’s License, including state required levels of active auto insurance.
• California Civil or Mechanical Professional Engineer (PE) license in good standing.
• SWRCB Water Distribution Operator Grade D3 or higher preferred.
• Preferred Project Management Professional (PMP).
• Preferred GIS-related certifications.
• Preferred Asset management certification.
• Preferred SCADA, controls, or instrumentation-related certifications.

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• AutoCAD experience required, particularly with schematic and diagrammatic drawings, scaled plan drawings, scaled mechanical and civil engineering details, use of dimensioning, and creation and manipulation of highly formatted drawings.
• Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional teams, internal staff, and external consultants or vendors.
• Proficiency in reading and reviewing technical drawings, construction documents, and project specifications.
• Strong knowledge of permitting processes with municipalities and public agencies.
• Ability to simultaneously work on multiple projects and produce quality results within deadlines.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Ability to work in a hybrid setting and travel to multiple locations around Southern California.

Competitive Benefits

Forest Lawn takes pride in offering an excellent benefits package to our employees, which taken as a whole, leads our industry and is competitive with the benefits in just about any other industry.

Click here to learn more about our benefit offerings.

Drug Testing Policy

Prior to beginning employment, all job applicants who receive a job offer will be required to voluntarily submit to a drug screening test conducted by a laboratory designated by Forest Lawn. The drug screening method is a hair collection test that will detect the use of illegal drugs within the past 90 days. A positive drug test may result in the withdrawal of the job offer.

E-Verify Statement

Forest Lawn has registered to participate in the federal government's E-Verify program. With E-Verify we are able to confirm the employment authorization of all newly hired employees through an electronic database maintained by the Social Security Administration and Department of Homeland Security. With respect to new hires, the E-Verify process is completed in conjunction with a new hire's completion of the Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification upon commencement of employment. E-Verify is not used as a tool to pre-screen candidates.

For up-to-date information on E-Verify, go to https://www.e-verify.gov/employees/e-verify-overview.

Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance

Forest Lawn will consider for employment all qualified Applicants, including those with Criminal Histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance.