Department:Parks Recreation & Natural Resources
Start Here. Grow Here. Stay Here. Join a dedicated team of land managers committed to protecting, preserving, restoring, interpreting, and maintaining Sarasota County's natural area parks. This professional role involves coordinating activities that ensure safe park use and enhance visitor experiences. Key responsibilities include overseeing facility operations, maintenance, and reservations; managing habitat restoration through prescribed fire, invasive species control, and species monitoring; recruiting, training, and coordinating volunteers; organizing special events and environmental education programs; supporting nature-based recreation initiatives; and managing contracts and agreements.
The pay starts at $56,139.20 and benefits begin within 60 days of hire! Apply today and take the first step towards a lasting career, helping us to maintain our beautiful natural areas, parks, and trails.
About the Position Primary sites include Lemon Bay Park, portions of Alligator Creek with other parks as assigned.
Job responsibilities include, but are not limited, to the following...
Park management and oversight- Regularly review assigned facilities and amenities ensuring safe and enjoyable experiences for park patrons.
- Supervise and schedule one staff.
- Timely response to Internal Standards Inspections with ticket requests for needed maintenance and repair including ground and facilities.
- Natural areas management including restoration and maintenance planning, invasive vegetation treatment and exotic/feral animal control measures.
- Knowledge of and participation in prescribed burning, fire mitigation planning and promotion of benefits of prescribed fire in educational programming.
- Review and ensure contract/agreement compliance and maintain positive partnerships.
- Apply for grants and ensure current grant requirements are being met, writing scopes of work and executing contractual projects.
- Prepare and implement park management plans, meeting division and department deadlines, ensuring archaeological and cultural resource protection.
- Actively promote environmental standards for protection of species and habitats consistent with the Environment Chapter of the Comprehensive Plan.
Customer Service- Improve customer experiences and visitor services.
- Produce promotional information (flyers, brochures and maps) for parks activities and programs.
- Provide appropriate responses to complaints, inquiries or requests for service through written correspondence, calls or meetings.
- Coordinate facility reservations and rentals through RecTrac system and staff.
- Process partnership possibilities and applications.
- Coordinate and outreach to other Sarasota County work units for joint projects.
- Actively participate in staff project meetings and discussions.
Volunteer management- Recruitment, coordination and/or training, for both single-day events or ongoing program needs.
- Volunteer meeting attendance; assisting with planning, development and implementation of volunteer events and programs.
- Review, vet, register, and track volunteers/hours in Volgistics system.
- Encourage and participate in joint projects with community partners, like Friends of Sarasota County Parks (FOSCP) chapters.
Programming- Plan, develop, and/or implement customer focused, nature-based programs and outdoor recreation opportunities throughout the park system.
- Assist with program marketing; ensuring that programs and events are listed, posted and promoted in the Parks Guide, Parks Online, email blasts and social media (through coordinators), County calendars, and RecTrac system.
- Create partnership opportunities for programming.
Other duties as assigned by Supervisor and/or Manager, such as completion of periodic, special or financial reports, related to facility usage.
About the Schedule- Full-Time, 40 hours per week.
- Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
- On rare occasions, work schedules may vary due to split shifts, rotations, on-call, emergencies, etc.
About YouMinimum Qualifications:- Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university in one of the biological or physical sciences, Environmental Engineering, or a related field -AND- three (3) years of related professional experience.
- -OR- Master's degree may substitute for one year of professional experience.
- -OR- Progressively responsible professional experience may substitute on a year-for-year basis for the required college degree.
- An ability to obtain FDACS pesticide applicator license within six (6) months of employment.
- Valid Florida driver's license by date of hire.
Preferred Qualifications: - Pass moderate or arduous pack test and shelter deployment within one-year from hire date and maintain annually.
- Certified Natural Areas Manager obtain within three (3) years (time period may be extended if courses are unavailable).
- Completion of Basic Wildland Firefighting (S-130/190), Intermediate Wildland Fire Behavior (S-290), Wildland Fire Chainsaws (S-212) and Completion of ICS 100-200 within three (3) years (time period may be extended if courses are unavailable).
Subject to Passing Substance Screening: This position is subject to passing a pre-employment substance screening. An applicant who fails to pass a required drug screening test shall be disqualified from employment in any class for a period of five (5) years.
Physical Demands: Employees must occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 lbs using a handling device (dolly, cart, etc.) or working with another team member to lift and/or move excessive poundage of 50 plus pounds.
About Everything ElseStarting Pay: $56,139.20
Our interview process could include phone interview(s), Microsoft Teams video interview(s), and/or in-person interview(s). If you are selected to join our team, please click on this link to review the Required First Day DocumentsYou will need to present the following items on your first day: 1. I-9 Acceptable Documents to show your identity and authorization to work. Use this link to learn more and review the different document options: https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents
- If your position requires a Florida Driver's License, this must be one of your documents. (Your Florida Driver's License can serve as one of your documents listed in link above - List B Documents.)
2. U.S. Social Security Card (signed, physical card). This is a requirement of our Payroll Department and failure to provide this document could jeopardize timely compensation. (Your U.S. Social Security Card can serve as one of your documents listed in link above - List C Documents.)
Benefits:- Enjoy great benefits including Health, Dental, Vision, and Life Insurance, Short-Term and Long-Term Disability, Flexible Spending Accounts, Employee Assistance Program (EAP), Florida Retirement System (FRS) and many, many more! Choose one of three great medical plans, including one with a $0 premium option, with completed preventative visits!
- For more information about employee benefits, please click this link or visit SCGov.net for additional information.
- Utilize our award-winning wellness program including free gyms at multiple Sarasota County Government locations.
- Enjoy 11 paid holidays, 3 personal days and 16 paid vacation days in the first year of full-time employment with increasing accrual rates with years of service. (That adds up to a possible 30 days off in your 1st year!)
A different blend of voices prompt better conversations, choices and results for everyone. Sarasota County - Many Voices, One Team. We celebrate and value the experiences, backgrounds, perspectives, talents and strengths that make us different.
Our vision is to attract, develop, retain and engage a talented workforce broadly representative of the citizens and communities we serve. To further value creativity, innovation, collaboration and great customer service - internally and externally.
A job applicant with a disability who requires reasonable accommodation to participate in the application/selection process is requested to make known the need for an accommodation to Human Resources or appropriate county staff members. For assistance with the application, please call 941-861-5353.
Sarasota County prohibits discrimination in all services, programs or activities. View the complete policy at scgov.net (keywords: ADA Compliance).
Sarasota County Government is a Tobacco-Free/Drug-Free Workplace.
