Wastewater (WW) Planning & Community Programs Manager

Metropolitan Council•390 Robert St. N St. Paul, MN

11d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Environmental Services (ES) Division has one (1) vacancy for a Manager of Wastewater Planning & Community Programs. This position is eligible for a hybrid telework arrangement. The candidate's telework location must be in Minnesota or Wisconsin. The Environmental Services Division (ES) protects public health and the environment, collecting and treating over 250 million gallons of wastewater daily and maintaining an extensive regional network of nine water resource recovery facilities and over 600 miles of large interceptor sewers. The Water Planning & Capital Delivery Department plays a vital role in ensuring efficient and effective water resources management through an integrated, regional approach. The Capital program is responsible for Wastewater system planning, Customer community relationships, calculation of the municipal wastewater charge, Record drawings, and Design, construction, and commissioning of all projects in the Environmental Services Capital Program. Our purpose is to provide leadership and information to empower Met Council and local actions that ensure clean, healthy, and sustainable water resources for the region. Our vision is clean water for future generations, and our mission is to partner, plan, and provide services to protect our region's water. By 2050, the communities we serve are projected to welcome an additional 657,000 residents and 324,000 households. Accommodating this growth while navigating the challenges of climate change, emerging environmental regulations, and increasing reliance on limited or contaminated water supplies requires a collaborative, relational approach to water management. ES is working closely with communities to plan for long-term sustainable water supplies, protect and restore surface water resources, and recover resources from wastewater to ensure local and regional decisions work together to support the orderly and economic development of the region over the long term. The Manager Wastewater Planning and Community Programs will report directly to the Assistant General Manager of Water Planning Services. In this high-impact role, you will lead a team of engineers, planners, and technical staff in technical engineering analysis, regional financial policy, and municipal relationships to ensure that the wastewater system plan supports regional growth that is orderly, economical, and sustainable.

Requirements

Any of the following combinations of experience in planning and/or engineering in local and/or regional government, and experience in high-level communications between local and regional government) and completed education (degree field of study):
Planning, or Engineering (Environmental, Civil, Mechanical, or Chemical, or closely related field): Bachelor’s degree AND seven (7) years of experience, INCLUDING at least three (3) or more years of experience supervising employees and teams AND registered as a Professional Engineer (PE) in the State of Minnesota or the ability to become licensed in MN, within six (6) months of hire.
Master's degree or higher AND five (5) years of experience, INCLUDING at least three (3) or more years of experience supervising employees and teams AND registered as a Professional Engineer (PE) in the State of Minnesota or the ability to become licensed in MN, within six (6) months of hire.
Knowledge Metropolitan Land Planning Act (Minn. Stat. Chapter 473).
Met Council Wastewater Discharge Rules.
Met Council Wastewater Service Agreement Principles and Policies.
Project and Program Management systems for coordinated delivery.
High-impact technical communication: Proficient in written and verbal communication, with extensive experience in public speaking, presenting before legislative committees or governing boards, and translating technical scientific/engineering material into accessible, plain-language policy briefs.
Enterprise and spatial data proficiency: Mastery of standard enterprise software (Microsoft Office) and a working knowledge of ArcGIS functionality to leverage geospatial datasets and tools.
Functionality to leverage geospatial datasets and tools.
Strategic decision-making: ability to make complex decisions in uncertain or ambiguous situations, aligning immediate demands with long-term regional goals.
Technical team leadership and coaching: proven ability to manage, supervise, and mentor multidisciplinary technical staff (engineers, planners, administrative, etc.), fostering employee development, performance, and cross-functional collaboration.
Interdepartmental Collaboration: ability to build and maintain strong, collaborative relationships across division and department lines, breaking down internal silos to achieve integrated solutions and optimal outcomes.

Nice To Haves

Experience with engineering principles in the conveyance and treatment of sanitary wastewater systems, interceptor systems, and local conveyance capacity analysis, and sewer modeling.
Experience with local development drivers and planning processes.
Experience with water sustainability and integrated water planning principles.
Customer-oriented project delivery.
Experience with sanitary sewer and wastewater conveyance and system engineering: advanced knowledge of engineering principles in the conveyance and treatment of sanitary wastewater systems, interceptor systems, and local conveyance capacity analysis, and sewer modeling.
Land use and regional planning concepts: thorough understanding of local and regional land use planning concepts, municipal zoning ordinances, and urban growth boundary administration related to demand projection, service planning, and community agreements.
Public utility finance and capital improvement programming: knowledge of capital improvement planning, municipal budgeting, state and federal funding structures (such as PFA grants/loans and general obligation bonds), procurement, and contract and agreement negotiation and administration.
Environmental law and statutory frameworks: Clean Water Act standards and state environmental permits (MPCA, DNR, MDH).
Intergovernmental negotiation and conflict resolution: Exceptional human relationship-building skills, with a demonstrated ability to negotiate matters of substantial value, build consensus among conflicting parties, and navigate highly sensitive political and administrative environments. Skilled at seeing multiple perspectives, identifying distinctions and relationships, and creating shared understanding and mental models.

Responsibilities

Integrated Planning and Wastewater System Master Planning: This position is directly responsible for protecting public health and regional environmental assets by ensuring regional infrastructure serves growth and development in an orderly, economical, and resilient way that is aligned with other water sustainability drivers.
Intergovernmental and Community Relationships: This position implements state statute and the Metropolitan Land Planning Act to support and guide municipal growth and protect regional wastewater system integrity. This role is the primary planning and service provision orchestrator between the Council and over 100 customer communities.
Fiscal Sustainability, Billing Integrity, And Capital Improvement Program Support: This position plays a critical role in maintaining fiscal responsibility and billing accuracy for the regional wastewater system. It ensures the integrity of revenue streams, supports the development and implementation of the Capital Improvement Program, and helps secure funding from state and federal sources through careful planning and compliance.
Oversee the technical review and formal approval process of local comprehensive sewer plans (under Minn. Stat. § 473.175) to ensure local zoning, sewer extensions, and developments conform to regional capacity limits.
Serve as the primary wastewater system technical and policy contact for state legislators, county commissioners, mayors, and local public works staff.
Resolve sensitive intergovernmental disputes regarding system connections, service, and environmental reviews.
Partners with ES Budget and Revenue to ensure Metropolitan Wastewater Charges (MWCs), the primary cost recovery mechanism utilized by ES, are equitable, fair, justified, consistently applied, and legally compliant.
Ensure that Metropolitan Wastewater Charges (MWCs), the primary cost recovery mechanism utilized by ES, are equitable, fair, justified, consistently applied, and legally compliant.
Direct the regional inflow and infiltration (I/I) mitigation program, partnering with communities to manage excess wet-weather flow, secure state grant funding, and support grant distribution.
Provide administrative and technical oversight and lead city interactions for the community wastewater flow allocation calculations, which form the billing foundation for the municipal wastewater charge.
Provide expert guidance on Sewer Availability Charge (SAC) determinations, explaining and tailoring criteria to balance development and maintain revenue requirements.
Collaborate with Plant and Interceptor Engineering sections, Operations, Budget and Revenue, and other departments to develop the 6-year Capital Improvement Program (CIP), ensuring project eligibility for Public Facilities Authority (PFA) loan funding and Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) approval.
Coordinate meetings with senior leaders, peers, and staff from engineering, water supply planning, water resources, and the Community Development Division.
Conduct capacity modeling studies, manage the overall system capacity model, and conduct check-ins with engineers and planners to review capacity models for current and planned regional interceptors.
Support internal sustainability efforts leading energy management and sustainability reporting staff.
Conduct project site visits and attend meetings with external partners (City officials, Engineers, Public Works staff, etc.) to review the community's flow data and service plans.
Oversee and manage a team of engineers, planners, and scientists.
Present to the Council's Environment Committee, Committee of the Whole, or full Council, and state legislature in support of the Governor's policy and budget recommendations related to programs under this position.