The city of Delaware is seeking applications for the new position of parks & natural resources director.
Delaware had a parks and recreation director until 2012, when the city contracted with the YMCA for recreation programming. It currently has a parks supervisor who oversees the 370 acres of parkland.
However, city staff members say they have felt there was a void in managing all of the city’s natural resources, which includes Delaware’s portion of the Olentangy River, and a full-time position was approved by City Council and budgeted for 2016.
“We underestimated losing the position,” City Manager Tom Homan said at the city’s Shade Tree Commission meeting on Tuesday. “We’re looking for someone who can do a whole lot.”
An example of one of the problems the director would deal with is controlling or eradicating invasive species, Homan told the commission. The director would also serve as staff representative for the commission, as well as on the parks & recreation advisory board.
The director would be “responsible for planning, coordinating and directing the operations of the four divisions of the city’s parks and natural resources department (Parks, Hidden Valley Golf Course, Oak Grove Cemetery and urban forestry),” states the job description. The director would oversee nine full-time employees and manage 24 parks, 20 miles of bike trails, a nine-hole golf course, a 72-acre cemetery and more than 15,000 trees.
Opening in 2016 will be a new dog park next to the Wetlands Park off Mill Run Crossing; and a dinosaur-themed “Spray and Play” splash pad and activity area at Veterans Park next to the YMCA.
A “position profile” notes that the city’s partnership with the YMCA “has been extremely successful.” However, “strategic leadership and direction is desired at the executive management level and would include oversight, input and regular review of recreation services programming.”
The position’s requirements include a bachelor’s or master’s degree in a field such as business management, conservation management, natural resources, parks and recreation management, public administration or urban forestry management; a minimum of five years of experience in the field; and a Certified Park and Recreation Professional designation.
The pay range is $38.46 to $41.83 an hour.
Applications will be accepted through March 6. “The goal is to have someone selected by Memorial Day,” Homan said.
For more information, call City Hall at 740-203-1025. To apply online, visit: http://www.delawareohio.net.
