Job Detail

Senior Forestry Maintenance Technician

Location: Durango, Colorado
Salary: $21.33 /hour

Job Title:  Senior Forestry Maintenance Technician	Reports to:   Arborist Supervisor
Department:  Parks and Recreation	FLSA Classification:   Non-Exempt
Revision Date:   October 2022	Pay Grade:  75
Minimum Education and Certification: Equivalent to completion of High School or GED. Valid State Commercial Driver’s License (CDL).
Minimum Experience: Two to three (2-3) years of progressively responsible related experience in forestry, building and grounds maintenance or a combination of education, training and experience which provides the required knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform the position duties and responsibilities.

 

GENERAL PURPOSE:  

This position will primarily support City Forestry in the maintenance and development of the urban forest, and will provide support to maintain parks, trails, cemetery, and open spaces in proper repair, clean and safe for public use.  Utilizes small-powered hand tools and light to heavy equipment to maintain grounds, landscaping, turf, irrigation, and trails.  May be assigned to routinely work in specialized areas of maintenance or locations as outlined below.

 

GENERAL POSITION DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

The following duties are normal for this position.  However, they are not to be construed as exclusive or all–inclusive.  To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each duty satisfactorily.  Other duties may also be required or assigned.

Forestry:

• Maintain the urban forest including pruning, chipping, stump grinding, chainsaw use and maintenance, installation of protective fencing for trees, tree removal, installation of new trees, and maintenance of existing trees.
• Provide and maintain a safe work environment for both staff and public.
• Ability to identify basic tree species.
• GIS skills for tree inventory mapping.
• Strong knowledge of arboriculture.

Turf & Landscape Beds:

• Test, diagnose, adjust, repair and/or replace irrigation system components and operation.
• Maintains landscaping areas including irrigating, excavating, removing weeds, raking leaves, fertilizing, cultivating, and trimming shrubs.
• Prepare and maintain annual flower beds; plant flowers, remove weeds and irrigate.
• Park maintenance; including mowing, edge trimming, fertilizing, removal of weeds, irrigating, excavating the land, and trimming trees; build and maintain fencing.
• Spray chemical insecticides and herbicides.
• Install and maintain park equipment, playground equipment, and athletic fields.

Cemetery:

• Dig and cover burial sites.
• Assist in maintaining the City's cemetery; site leveling and filling as necessarily.

General Park Maintenance:

• Perform a variety of semi-skilled maintenance functions, including carpentry, plumbing, and painting; maintain park buildings and restrooms.; pick-up and clean facilities.

Equipment Operation and Maintenance:

• Operates and maintains various types of snow removal equipment; removes snow from parking lots, walkways, and hard surface trails within the park system.
• Operates various power tools for trail maintenance and other projects including wood saws, chainsaws, leaf-blowers and weed trimmers.
• Operates heavy equipment including backhoes, dump trucks, farm tractors and toolcats. Repair equipment.
• Assist in the maintenance and repair of all departmental maintenance equipment.

 

Fiscal Responsibilities:

• Incumbent has minimal purchasing responsibilities including documentation of approved expenditures with supervisor.

City Organization Duties and Responsibilities:

• Represent the Department and City to other staff and members of the public.
• Provide quality customer service to individuals needing directions or assistance.

 

Supervisory Relationships:

• Works under general supervision of the Arborist Supervisor within the scope of general policies, procedures and objectives and is carried out in accordance with standard practices, instructions, or previous training. Provides guidance, direction, and oversight to seasonal or part-time employees with projects or job assignments.

 

JOB QUALIFICATIONS – KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES

 

Knowledge of:

• Basic practices, methods, and materials used in forestry, grounds maintenance, and general maintenance work.
• Basic operational characteristics of irrigation systems, including heads, controllers, valves, piping, and wiring. ­
• Occupational hazards and standard safety practices.
• Hazardous chemicals, herbicides, and fertilizers.
• Operation and maintenance of all light and some heavy power-driven equipment.
• Practices, methods, and materials used in grounds maintenance, and general maintenance work.
• Traffic laws, ordinances, and rules involved in heavy equipment operations.
• Practices, methods, tools, materials, and equipment of the building trades.
• Procedures, policies, and operations within area of assignment.
• City employee handbook policies and procedures.
• Basic computer functions such as using the internet, email, and devices such as printers or scanners.

 

Skill in:

• Locating and correcting defects in facilities and equipment.
• Operating and maintaining all assigned tools; including chainsaws, power and manual pole saws, handsaws, other forestry equipment, light equipment and moderate to heavy power-driven equipment.
• Communicating clearly and concisely primarily in verbal form.

 

Ability to:

• Read, understand, and interpret documents such as safety rules, operation and maintenance instructions, maps, blueprints sketches, technical and procedure manuals, etc.
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with those contacted in the course of work.
• Work the allocated hours of the position, including some weekend/holiday on-call, and snow removal shifts.
• Complete certification and training specific to position.

 

Work Environment:

Work environment includes frequent exposure to wet or humid conditions, fumes, or airborne particles, toxic or caustic chemicals and outdoor weather conditions.

 

Physical and Mental Requirements/Activities:

• This work requires the frequent exertion of up to 50 pounds of lifting/moving or force and occasional lift, move or drag 100 pounds or more while performing essential functions of the job.
• Work regularly requires the ability to stand, walk, sit; use hands to finger, handle or feel; reach with hands and arms; balance, climb, stoop, kneel crouch or crawl; and speak and hear.
• Specific vision abilities required by this job include close, distance and peripheral vision; depth perception; and the ability to adjust focus.
• Acceptable verbal and conversation skills to effectively communicate with others in English.
• Ability to understand and follow oral and written instructions.
• Ability to read and write English and interpret documents such as safety rules, material safety data sheets, operation and maintenance instructions, procedure manuals, and so forth.

• Ability to recognize occupational hazards in work activities and take safety precautions.

• Maintain mental capacity which allows the capability of making sound decisions and following directions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nothing in this job description limits management’s right to assign or reassign duties and responsibilities to this job at any time.  The duties listed above are intended only as illustrations of the various types of work that may be performed.  The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the position if the work is similar, related or a logical assignment to the position.  The job description does not constitute an employment agreement between the employer and employee and is subject to change by the employer as the needs of the employer and requirements of the job change.

 

 

---

Back to Job Listings