Senior Project Manager (Project & Property Planning)

The Role

Develops and maintains the Facilities strategy for project and property planning. Leads or participates in developing and updating client and campus master plans. Conducts needs analysis and feasibility studies, and develops scope, budget, business case, and project charters for major projects. Facilitates the evaluation process for internal reporting of regional buildings and land. Supports the strategic acquisition of property and disposal of surplus property. 

Holds overall accountability for the contamination and environmental status of regional lands within the Facilities Management portfolio. Provides oversight and strategic guidance to staff and consultants responsible for technical assessments and remediation activities.

Duties/Responsibilities

• Supervises a Project Engineer/Geoscientist (Environmental and Planning). Indirectly supervises and assigns work to administrative staff and project management staff. Administers contracts with consultants and contractors including selection and termination. 
• Ensures the corporation’s future accommodation needs are planned for and implemented in a timely way by monitoring space utilization, identifying future needs with user departments, conducting or directing space studies by in-house staff or consultants, and developing accommodation master plans for departments and the corporation. 
• Conducts studies on service delivery options, impact of cost efficiency and effectiveness measures, and best practices and alternative strategies. Develops options and cost comparisons and recommends preferred options for implementation. Develops internal standards and performance benchmarks based on external statistics. 
• Conducts initial evaluation of major projects, including developing scope of work, options, and analysis. Carries out feasibility studies and prepares business cases. Conducts initial stakeholder management and change management for major projects. Develops capital budgets and project charters. Prepares council reports for approval as required. 
• Manages and prepares functional programs that define specific activities for client space needs to guide architects in developing schematic designs for new projects. Completes site option evaluations, retains real estate professionals, works with developers, and develops negotiation strategies to acquire new sites for regional buildings. Evaluates temporary and long-term uses of existing property and maintains a buildable land inventory. 
• Facilitates the land evaluation process through consultation and circulation with client departments to determine internal need for repurposing regional buildings and land. Supports disposal/sale of properties that are surplus to regional needs.  Coordinates strategic acquisitions of land in coordination with Legal Services and Build Waterloo Region. 
• Provides facilities, capital planning, environmental subject matter expertise, and strategic advice to client departments in relation to property purchases, expropriation, property disposition, road allowance dedications. Supports efforts with brownfield financial incentive program applications and planning application matters. Participates in negotiations with property owners and developers. Participates in the development and preparation of transaction agreements and other legal agreements.
• Understands and knows when to coordinate due diligence investigations to support acquisitions of new land and building assets (e.g., designated substances audit, building condition assessments, environmental site assessments).
• Ensures environmental reviews and monitoring of facilities and land under consideration for regional use are rigorous and compliant.
• Oversees staff who provide guidance and expertise on matters related to land contamination, environmental regulations and compliance, policy related to contamination, due diligence for property transactions, environmental compliance planning, and implementation of environmental capital projects. 

Additional Duties/Responsibilities

• Coordinates the consultant selection process. Reviews and negotiates work plans and budgets with consultants. Presents recommendations to committees and council. Ensures signing, sealing, and provision of insurance certificates for consulting service agreements.
• Negotiates consulting agreements and manages construction contract budgets. Prepares budget estimates and establishes budget requirements for in-house services. Arranges purchase orders. Prepares, reviews, approves, and recommends payments to consultants/contractors. Negotiates claims, disputes, and payments with consultants/contractors. In the event of default, negotiates with bonding companies for completion of work. Prepares, reviews, and certifies payment applications by contractors and ensures holdbacks per legislation. Approves purchase requisitions and invoices.
• Has frequent contact with senior management and members of council. 
• Testifies at hearings as an expert witness to support the project engineer.
• Chairs the property planning working group and leads the property planning and evaluation process.  Maintains the Region’s centralized land inventory in the land evaluation GIS.
• Oversees project performance management reviews for completed capital projects.
• Identifies opportunities for and pursue grants, funds, and cost-sharing opportunities for joint ventures. Negotiates strategic joint ventures with external agencies. 
• Keeps current on industry developments and best practices. 
• Provides information, recommendations, and decisions through reports and presentations to stakeholders (e.g., other business areas, council members, developers, consultants, special interest groups, the public, legal system, the media). 
• Performs related duties as required.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Knowledge and skills are normally acquired through a degree in applied sciences, engineering, or architecture, with specialization in issues related to land use development and contaminated soils. 
• Knowledge and skills in engineering and/or architecture principles, including significant, progressively responsible experience in building facility design, capital planning and budget development, geoscientific/engineering design, contract law and construction practices, project management and civil site works and infrastructure. 
• Must be licensed and in good standing as a Professional Engineer in the Province of Ontario or be a member in good standing holding a Limited License in the area of practice(s) as issued by the PEO. For those trained outside of Canada, equivalency will be determined by the PEO. Or must be registered for membership as an Architect with the Ontario Architects Association, or as a Professional Geoscientist with the Professional Geoscientists of Ontario.
• Participates in activities to maintain professional license.
• Knowledge and skill in facility accommodation and capital planning.
• Knowledge of geology, geophysics, geochemistry, hydrogeology, and transport of groundwater contaminants.
• Knowledge and skill in mathematical modelling. 
• Knowledge of and ability to comply with policies, procedures, industry best practices, and relevant legislation and regulations. 
• Ability to explore project alternatives individually and on teams; recommend solutions and improvements to contracts, standards, and procedures; review decisions and issues with corporate/political sensitivity with the Manager; and deal with multiple priorities and interruptions.
• Strategic, analytical, and continuous improvement skills to investigate and evaluate a range of alternatives and strategies and plan/implement solutions; anticipate and identify potential difficulties, their causes, and solutions; research and prepare technical reports and project requirements; and organize information generated by past studies and programs. 
• Leadership, communication, negotiation, and human relation skills to develop and maintain working relationships with various levels of staff, consultants, contractors, government representatives, and the public; communicate complex technical issues to staff, elected officials, and the public; achieve buy-in from senior staff; negotiate contracts and project requirements; resolve conflict; and participate as an effective team member.  
• Ability to compile and write expert/technical reports to committees and council, business cases, project budgets, project charters, contracts, and correspondence.
• Ability to prepare and conduct presentations, lead public meetings, and testify at hearings as an expert witness. 
• Computer skills with ability to use software such as Microsoft Office, GIS, and relational databases.
• Ability to participate in an official standby/on-call rotation to respond to legislated or time sensitive demands beyond regularly scheduled work hours.
• Ability to travel within and outside Waterloo Region.
• Ability to support and demonstrate the Region’s values.