Construction Manager

Salary

$116,168.00 - $148,262.40 Annually

Location

Tacoma, WA

Job Type

Classified

Job Number

2043-26

Department

City of Tacoma - CITY WIDE LIST

Opening Date

04/01/2026

Closing Date

4/15/2026 5:00 PM Pacific

Description

Benefits

Questions

Position Description

The City of Tacoma and Tacoma Public Utilities are looking for driven and experienced Construction Managers to join our team!

In this pivotal role, you'll ensure that our vital infrastructure projects are delivered on time, within budget, and to the highest quality standards. This position is distinguished by its leadership responsibilities, including the potential to supervise Associate Construction Managers, Construction Inspectors, and Survey crews. You will be instrumental in ensuring strict adherence to contract documents and all Federal, State, and City ordinances and regulations. If you are a proactive leader with a proven track record in construction management and a commitment to public service, we encourage you to apply!

Vacancies may occur within the following departments:

Public Works

Tacoma Water

Environmental Services

Key Responsibilities:

Public Works:

The Public Works Engineering Division is seeking Construction Managers to help deliver complex, high-value capital improvement projects that support the City's infrastructure and community needs. Managers work across a wide range of municipal systems-including roadways, bridges, sidewalks, trails, facilities, wastewater, and surface water infrastructure-while partnering closely with Environmental Services, Tacoma Public Utilities, and other City teams to guide projects from construction through completion.

Environmental Services:

The Construction Manager will play an important role in the Capital Delivery Group of the Environmental Services Science and Engineering (ESSE) Division. The CM will collaborate and coordinate with the group's project engineers and Inspectors on the team's construction management of capital improvement projects for the City's Wastewater, Stormwater, and Solid Waste Utilities (approximately average annual Capital improvement budget of $30 Million).ESSE offers a large diversity of construction projects, including wastewater treatment plant facilities, pump stations, storm water facilities, collection system replacements, green stormwater infrastructure, and various building upgrades.

Tacoma Water:

Tacoma Water is seeking a skilled and motivated Construction Manager to support a diverse portfolio of complex Capital Improvement Projects and private development initiatives. These efforts are critical to ensuring the long-term safety, reliability, and performance of the region's potable water infrastructure. This position provides the opportunity to work across a broad service area, including Tacoma, Pierce and King Counties, Federal Way, and Puyallup, while supporting key system interconnections with Auburn, Bonney Lake, Black Diamond, and Covington. The Construction Manager is responsible for overseeing water system construction activities, including supply and distribution pipelines, water quality facilities, and other critical infrastructure serving residential, commercial, and medical customers. This role ensures that all construction practices adhere to American Water Works Association (AWWA) standards for potable water main installation, as well as applicable state and local regulations and internal policies. This position plays a key role in maintaining a high-performing and dependable water distribution system that supports public health, fire protection, and water quality preservation. The Construction Manager will provide oversight on a wide range of construction and installation projects, including water and electrical systems, streets, and related facilities, ensuring that projects are delivered within scope, on schedule, and within budget. Responsibilities also include managing and coordinating all aspects of contract administration for City projects, including but not limited to prevailing wage compliance, review and approval of subcontracting requests, and tracking and documentation of working days. The Construction Manager serves as a central point of coordination and communication between internal teams, contractors, developers, and customers, ensuring alignment, responsiveness, and successful project delivery.

Responsibilities Include:

Provide construction management on a variety of construction and installation projects and ensuring that projects are constructed within the scope of the project, on schedule, and within budget

Supervise capital construction inspection staff, and coordinate all project construction related needs.

Ensure that City projects are constructed in conformance with contract documents, Federal, State and City ordinances and regulations

Assist in the evaluation of the bid proposals and provide recommendation for award

Prepare agenda and conduct Pre-Construction Meetings and weekly progress meetings

Responsible for facilitating the review of Shop Drawings/Submittals including the contractor's Construction Schedule and subsequent look ahead schedules

Responsible for all construction related correspondence in accordance with department policies

Responsible for tracking, coordinating, negotiating changes to the vendor contract(s) and creating/estimating contract Change Orders

Responsible for project communications between Contractor, Inspector, Engineer and other project specific stakeholders

Oversee and coordinate all aspects of Contract Administration requirements on City projects, including but not limited to Prevailing Wage documentation, Request to Sublet Work, Retainage, and Statement of Working Days

Review monthly progress payments submitted by the Inspector and ensure that progress payments are paid within 30 days of the City established payment cutoff date

Provide oversight of construction budget and schedule including risk review and forecasting

Prepare for, coordinate, and participate in all federal, state, and City audits.

Assist in the training of inspection and administrative staff in Construction Management

Assist in the defense of claims for damages, claims/lawsuits filed against the City

Qualifications

An equivalent combination to:

Graduation from high school or equivalent AND one of the following:

10 years in construction management serving in the capacity as a project engineer or construction manager or 12 years as a construction inspector with increasingly responsible construction management experience; OR

Associates Degree in Construction Management (or equivalent) with 8 years' experience in construction management or equivalent serving in the capacity as a project engineer, construction manager or 10 years as a construction inspector; OR

Bachelor of Science in Construction Management or equivalent and 6 years of experience in construction management

LICENSES, CERTIFICATES AND OTHER REQUIREMENTS

Certified Construction Manager through Construction Management Association of America (CMAA) or equivalent, Professional Engineering license from Washington State, or certification from the Design Build Institute of America (DBIA) is desirable but not required.

Valid Washington State driver's license at time of appointment and maintenance thereafter.

Knowledge & Skills

Construction specifications and plans.

Regulations related to municipality construction projects

Basic principles and practices of engineering.

Applicable laws, codes, regulations, policies and procedures.

State and local codes as applied to safety and protection of public rights-of-way.

Record-keeping techniques.

Interpersonal skills using tact, patience and courtesy.

Learn to interpret, apply and explain codes, rules, regulations, policies and procedures.

Oral and written communications skills.

Establish and maintain cooperative and effective working relationships with others.

Operate a motor vehicle.

Computer software equivalent to MSWord, MS Excel, MS Access, and a scheduling/estimating program.

Basic math including geometry and trigonometry.

Selection Process & Supplemental Information

A Commitment to Equity & Diversity

At the City of Tacoma, we're on a mission to make our workforce as diverse and inclusive as the community we serve. We actively seek out candidates from a wide range of backgrounds and cultures. Join our team at the City of Tacoma and help us build a more vibrant, inclusive, and equitable community for all.

If you have a less traditional background, we want to hear about your transferrable skills and experience. We value a variety of perspectives and are excited to see what you bring to the table.

The Community

Tacoma is centrally located just 32 miles south of the city of Seattle and 31 miles north of the state capital, Olympia. The City of Tacoma is also home to the Port of Tacoma, which is among the largest container ports in the United States. Like most cities in the northwest, Tacoma is surrounded by beautiful nature, offering residents many opportunities for outdoor adventures.

Largely suburban in nature with a small, but dense, urban core, Tacoma is home to numerous institutes of higher learning that attract students from across the country. The University of Washington Tacoma, Pacific Lutheran University, University of Puget Sound, a satellite campus of the Evergreen State College, three community/technical colleges, and several trade and business schools are within Tacoma's geographic area. Downtown's Cultural District is the site of the Washington State History Museum, Museum of Glass, the Tacoma Art Museum, and America's Car Museum.

With its affordable housing and distinctive neighborhoods and business districts, the city has been recognized numerous times as a best city to live in the nation. To see a few of the great things Tacoma has to offer, view this YouTube Video!

View this exciting video to learn more about the City of Tacoma: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2n5MWl8KFvl

Apply

All interested individuals should apply online and attach a detailed resume that includes job experience, major responsibilities and accomplishments related to this position. Cover letter is optional.

Applicants who meet the minimum qualifications will have their responses to the supplemental questions scored. Applicants must receive a passing score to be placed on the eligible list for interview and hiring consideration. Applicants whose experience and training most closely reflect the needs of the department may be invited to participate in an interview.

Appointment is subject to passing a background check and a pre-employment medical exam and drug screen. This position is covered by a Labor Agreement between the City of Tacoma and the Local 17. New employees must successfully complete a nine-month probationary period prior to obtaining permanent status in this classification.

Get Assistance

For assistance with the application process or questions regarding this job announcement please contact the Human Resources office at (253) 591-5400 by 4:00 p.m. of the closing date of the job announcement.

For technical difficulties using the Neogov system, call the applicant support line at 1-855-524-5627 between 6:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Pacific Standard Time. This will allow us to assist you before the job announcement closes.

Communication with the City of Tacoma

We primarily communicate via email during the application process. Emails from Tacoma.gov and/or governmentjobs.com should be placed on your safe domain list to ensure that you receive notifications in a timely manner. As a precaution, you may also want to check your junk email folders.

Compensation & Benefits

Pay Details:

Hourly Rate: $55.85 - $71.28

Annual Salary: $116,168.00 - $148,262.40

Employee Benefits | City of Tacoma (https://tacoma.gov/government/departments/human-resources/employee-benefits/)

The City of Tacoma provides excellent medical, dental and vision plans for the whole family; paid holidays and paid leave; participation in the Tacoma Employees' Retirement System (alternate plan for Police/Fire); continuing education and advancement opportunities and a growing variety of City-sponsored health and wellness opportunities and incentives.

Medical Coverage: For eligible employees and their families, including domestic partners and dependent children age 26 or younger.

Dental Coverage: For eligible employees and their families, including domestic partners and dependent children age 26 or younger.

Vision Coverage: For eligible employees and their eligible dependents.

Paid Leave: City employees are entitled to received paid holidays, sick/vacation leave or personal time off (PTO), depending upon union affiliation and appointment @type.

Insurance Plans: Employees are covered by a long-term disability plan. Short-term and expanded long-term disability insurance plans are also available to employees. The State Industrial Insurance Act also covers employees.

Deferred Compensation: Income can be set aside on a pretax basis and invested for supplementation of normal retirement income.

Retirement: All employees of the City, except members of the Police and Fire services, Tacoma Rail and certain project employees, are included in the Tacoma Employees' Retirement System. Information on the Tacoma Employees' Retirement System can be found at www.cityoftacoma.org or by calling (253) 502-8200.

Other Employment Information

Direct Deposit: Employees are paid on a bi-weekly schedule by direct deposit.

Salary Increases: Based on satisfactory job performance, the City provides for a regular progression of salary increases for most classifications according to the salary schedule.

Union Affiliation: Many job classifications are covered by union security provisions which require union membership, dues, or payment of equivalent service fees.

Note: The provisions of this job announcement do not constitute an expressed or implied contract. Any provision contained herein may be modified and/or revoked without notice.

Responses to supplemental questions must be original content created by the applicant using their own words. The use of online tools or resources to create responses, such as Artificial Intelligence (ChatGPT, etc.), Google, Bing, etc., or plagiarism in any form, is considered cheating and falsification of the application. I understand that any form of cheating or falsification will disqualify my application for further consideration.

Yes

Do you have a high school diploma, or equivalent?

Yes

Please mark which of the following best describes your equivalent education and experience as it pertains to this role.

10 or more years in construction management serving in the capacity as a Project Engineer or Construction Manager OR 12 or more years' as a Construction Inspector with increasingly responsible construction management experience

Associates Degree in Construction Management (or equivalent) with 8 or more years experience in construction management (or equivalent) serving in the capacity as a Project Engineer or Construction Manager OR 10 or more years as a Construction Inspector

Bachelor of Science in Construction Management (or equivalent) and 6 or more years of experience in construction management

None of the above

Do you have a valid Washington State Driver's License?

Yes

INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE EXPERIENCE AND TRAINING TEST:

Questions #6-11 are the experience and training test that will be used to establish the eligibility list. These questions will be scored by subject matter experts who will not have access to any of your application materials, and will provide scores based solely upon your answers to the questions. Your answers must stand on their own merit. DO NOT RESPOND WITH "SEE RESUME" in lieu of answering this question, as raters will not have access to your resume or application and this will result in a score of 0 points and you will fail the test. Your score on the experience and training test will ONLY reflect your response to the questions asked.

Please indicate "Yes" that you have read and understand the instructions for questions #6-11.

Yes

Please describe your experience in the construction industry and include any tools that you are proficient in construction management, change orders, cost estimating and constructability design review. Please provide a bulleted list, and brief explanation.

This position often partners with other City departments or municipalities on projects. Please describe your experience working with stakeholders (outside of your organization) on projects. How did you ensure that their voices were heard, and that their requirements or requests were met?

The City is committed to safety and has initiated a Citywide Contractor Safety Team. Please describe a situation where you addressed an unsafe condition or practice on a construction site and how you addressed it.

Describe a time you had a conflict with a contractor. Please explain the situation and describe the steps you took to resolve the issue. What was the outcome?

What steps would you take to create a climate that is supportive, respectful and that values differing perspectives and experiences? How would you measure the success of this objective?

One of the City's Principles that guides us is Equity. Describe what equity means to you and describe any experience you have working with diverse groups of people.

Please tell us how you learned about this job opening.

Job Interest Card notification

Professional organization

Military organization

City of Tacoma employee

Online job board posting

Word of mouth

Tacoma Training & Education Program (TTEP)

Indeed

Facebook

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Careers in Government

Government Jobs

Outreach Event

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African American Job Network

Disability Job Network

Asian Job Network

Latino Job Network

Retirement Job Network

LGBT Job Network

Veteran Job Network

Other

Please provide specific information regarding how you learned about this job opening. Thank you, your feedback will be used to evaluate our success reaching the public and refine our methods for future job postings.

Required Question

Employer

City of Tacoma

Address

Human Resources Department 747 Market Street Tacoma, Washington, 98402-3764

Phone

253-591-5400

Website

http://www.tacoma.gov

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