Description

Employees at Bernalillo County enjoy the ability to team up with each other to build a high quality of life for our county residents, communities, and businesses. In addition to being an organization with a strong focus on work-life balance, building a culture of flexibility, learning, and belonging the County offers many benefits. Employees of Bernalillo County enjoy many thoughtful rewards such as, but not limited to generous leave accruals; career development opportunities; remote & flex-work options as appropriate; longevity pay; education assistance program; health benefits; lucrative retirement; and so much more.

The Deputy Director of Parks, Recreation & Open Space (PROS) provides senior leadership for Bernalillo County’s parks, open space, and public land assets. The role oversees land stewardship, planning and construction, operations and maintenance, and long-range system planning, while partnering closely with the Department Director to develop and implement strategies and policies that ensure effective stewardship of County land and park facilities, efficient capital delivery, and compliance with County priorities and regulations.

Requirements

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Provide executive leadership for major PROS functional areas, including land stewardship, capital planning/construction, and asset management. 
• Advise the Department Director on operational, technical, and strategic matters; serve as Acting Director as needed. 
• Represent PROS in executive, interdepartmental, and external forums with County leadership, elected officials, regulators, and partners. 
• Lead land stewardship strategy for public lands (preservation planning, fuels mitigation, invasive species management, ecological health, interim land management). 
• Set stewardship standards, work plans, and performance measures aligned with the Integrated Vegetation Maintenance Management Plan, staffing, seasonal needs, and budgets; ensure coordination with public access, safety, and long-term development. 
• Lead interagency and cross-department coordination for land stewardship and natural resource management. 
• Oversee the full lifecycle of parks/recreation/public land capital projects (planning through closeout), including delivery practices, scope/schedule/cost oversight, change orders, and risk management. 
• Coordinate with Public Works and other County departments on facility asset identification, lifecycle planning, and maintenance responsibilities. 
• Provide executive oversight of parks/public lands operations and maintenance (irrigation, turf/ball fields, landscaping, hardscape, facility grounds), establish measurable standards and evaluate outcomes against benchmarks, and implement lifecycle-based asset management to align maintenance with capital planning and sustainability.
• Lead PROS redesign implementation by establishing structures/operating models, governance, cross-department workflows, and continuity during transition; build performance systems to track service delivery, asset condition, and capital outcomes and recommend long-term organizational structure/realignment. 
• Lead development, updates, and implementation of the PROS Master Plan; coordinate with internal teams, consultants, and partners; align programming, stewardship, and capital feasibility. 
• Support development and oversight of capital and operating budgets; provide executive oversight of staffing analysis, recruitment support, performance management, and succession planning.
• Ensure compliance with County policies, ordinances, Standard Operating Guidelines, Directives, and applicable Collective Bargaining Agreements; support audits and maintain confidentiality of sensitive records and decisions. 
   

*The above information is intended to outline the general nature and scope of the duties required for this position. It is not an exhaustive list and may vary depending on specific job assignments and responsibilities.   
 

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS 

• Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Public Administration, Recreation, Planning, Engineering, Construction Management, Natural Resources, Environmental Science or a related field. 
• Ten (10) years of work experience in one or more of the following areas; Public Land Stewardship, Natural Resource management, Parks and Public Land Operations and Maintenance, Capital Project Delivery, Construction Management, Public Infrastructure Planning and Implementation
• Four (4) years in a managerial role. 
   

*Any equivalent combination of related education and/or experience may be considered for the above requirements.  
 

PREFERENCES 

• Demonstrated experience leading organizational change and implementing new operating models. 
• Experience with asset lifecycle management systems, master planning, and capital prioritization. 
• Certifications relevant to land management or construction oversight, such as pesticide applicator licenses, environmental protection, irrigation or backflow certifications, CDL, or construction management credentials (e.g., CCM, PMP). 
   

SCREENING AND COMPLIANCE 

• The offer of this Bernalillo County position requires compliance with the following: 
  • Successful completion of a post-offer employment medical examination. 
  • Adherence to all County safety guidelines. 
  • Complete all FEMA training(s) assigned to this position. 
  • Possession of a valid New Mexico driver’s license by the date of hire and maintenance of a valid license while employed in this position. 
    Complete required supervisor training, if applicable. 
     

WORKING CONDITIONS 

• All essential duties are performed indoors. 
• Duties are performed in a temperature-controlled environment. 
• Duties are performed on an even surface, which may be carpeted or tiled. 
• The working surface is typically dry. 
• Work is done primarily alone but can be done with a select team at times. 
   

EQUIPMENT, TOOLS AND MATERIALS 

• Equipment typically used in the performance of office duties includes telephone, computer, printer, and copy machine. 
• Materials and products handled in the course of performing essential duties include files, forms, reports, various other paperwork, and a wide variety of basic office supplies.