Construction Plan Reviewer na City of Charlottesville, VA

About the Department

The City's Construction Plan Reviewer is part of the Department of Neighborhood Development Services and performs responsible administrative and advanced technical work to enforce the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code (USBC) for Construction Plan Review including performing inspections and permit technician backup. Work is performed under the supervision of and reports to the Building Code Official.

To learn more about the Department of Neighborhood Development Services and its operations, please visit: https://www.charlottesville.gov/261/Neighborhood-Development-Services

The preferred hiring range for this position is between $31.00 - $36.56 an hour ($64,480.00 - $76,044.80 annually). Starting offer is based on applicable education, experience, and internal equity. This is a full-time, non-exempt, position which provides excellent benefits including 13 paid holidays plus 1 floating holiday, paid vacation and sick leave, health insurance options with employer contribution, employer-paid life insurance, City's retirement options, gym membership reimbursement, tuition reimbursement, and continuing education/training opportunities.

• For a general summary of benefits offered by the City, please click the 'benefits' tab on this posting, or visit https://www.charlottesville.gov/1047/Employee-Benefits.
• The City of Charlottesville manages its own retirement system which offers both a defined benefit and a defined contribution option.  While the City does not participate in VRS, the City has a Portability Agreement with VRS and there are certain provisions that must be met. For questions pertaining to the Portability Agreement, please contact the City's Benefits Administrator at 434-970-3462.

Position Duties

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations will be considered to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. The essential functions of the job are not limited to those listed in the job description. The City retains the discretion to add to or change the duties of the position at any time.

• Reviews building plans and permit applications for compliance with the USBC with a focus on residential buildings for approval. May handle basic commercial plan reviews as necessary or assigned.
• Reviews, analyzes, and evaluates plans within all specialized areas (plumbing, structural, building, mechanical, or electrical), including to confirm structural loading, energy efficiency, occupant loading, and building areas.
• Provides inspectors with additional technical support for code decisions and may perform site inspections. 
• Reviews code modification requests.
• Inspects existing buildings for hazardous conditions and structural failures, as instructed.
• Investigates building and site complaints and conditions of buildings where fires or other failures have occurred, as instructed.
• Issues warnings and stop work orders for non-complying projects.
• Issues certificates of occupancy, as instructed.
• Notifies engineers, contractors, architects, developers, and others concerning code discrepancies on plans reviewed, and informs applicants of necessary corrections required to plans submitted by clearly documenting deficiencies in written narrative form (including specific code citations) to effectively communicate requirements of code compliance.
• Monitors third party inspection services to ensure that construction complies with approved plans.
• Effectively responds to questions from citizens, contractors, and builders regarding enforcement, complaints, violations, and/or future changes to the building code. 
• Assists in the coordination and information dissemination concerning construction projects with interdepartmental or intergovernmental implications.
• Collaborates with the other Plans Reviewers, Inspectors, Zoning, Planning, and staff from other departments to coordinate USBC and City requirements for permit issuance, inspections and issuance of Certificate of Occupancies.
• Assists and makes recommendations to homeowners in preparation of plumbing, structural, or other plans when asked.
• Testifies in court on code violation cases.
• Prepares applicable correspondence, reports, and records of activities.
• Operates a city vehicle in the performance of job duties.
• Responsible for appropriate use and maintenance of City equipment, tools, and other resources, including work time.  
• Regular and reliable attendance.

Other Duties

• Serves as a backup for the Permit Technician role performing front-line customer service, clerical, and support service work related to permitting activities and operations such as but not limited to processing and verifying applications, assessing and accepting fees, and scheduling inspections.
• Performs additional duties to support operational requirements as apparent or assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

Education and Experience: Candidates may qualify by demonstrating the required knowledge and skills outlined for the job through experience(s) other than formal education.

• Associate degree, technical/vocational degree or some college-level coursework in construction, business management or a related field AND at least 3 years of experience in the building construction trade, in building inspections, or a related area.

• High School diploma or GED AND at least 5 years of experience in the building construction trade, in building inspections, or a related area.

• An equivalent combination of education and experience may be considered in lieu of the specific requirements listed above that would confer equivalent knowledge and ability. (13VAC5-63-50, Code of Virginia) 

Preferred:

• Bachelor’s degree in a related field. 

Certifications/Licenses/Other Requirements:

• Certification of Residential Building Inspector and Residential Plan Reviewer per Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code, (Virginia Certification Standards), within 1 year of hire or the state requirement for time limitations. 
• Must obtain and maintain a valid Virginia driver’s license and acceptable driving record according to city criteria.  
• Required to successfully pass a pre-employment background check and pre-employment drug screen. 

Knowledge, Skills, Abilities and Other Characteristics 
Job Knowledge

• Thorough knowledge of building construction materials and methods. 
• Thorough knowledge of Virginia building codes, Charlottesville building and zoning codes, and related laws and applicable ordinances. 
• Thorough knowledge of stages of construction, and to identify violations and defects where they may be most easily observed and corrected.  
• Thorough knowledge of poor workmanship, inferior materials, and hazards of fire and collapsing buildings. 
• Thorough knowledge of building construction, residential inspections, electrical, mechanical, plumbing, and fire protection inspections. 

Reading

• Intermediate: ability to read and understand written materials such as newspapers, magazines, multi-step instruction manuals, and building code materials. 

Writing

• Intermediate: ability to organize data and write clear and concise reports, prepare materials such as business letters, explanations, and summaries with proper format, punctuation, spelling, and grammar, using all parts of speech. Writes inspection reports.

Math

• Intermediate: ability to deal with number systems; simple formulas, practical application of fractions, percentages, ratios/proportions and measurement. Applies systematic multi-factor analysis, trend analysis, and other forms of data analysis.

Communication Skills

• Advanced: Establishes and maintains effective working relationships with co-workers, officials, agencies, businesses, and the public. Prepares and presents technical oral reports. Examples include making recommendations regarding policy development and implementation. May involve support of controversial positions or the negotiation of sensitive issues or important presentations. May include interactions that involve stressful, negative situations requiring significant tact and the ability to diffuse aggressive behavior and reach consensus. Elements of persuasion may be necessary to gain cooperation and understanding. Evaluates customer satisfaction, develops cooperative associations, and utilizes resources to continuously improve customer satisfaction.  

Independence and Decision-Making

• Requires Limited Direction: normally completes work according to their own judgment, requesting supervisory assistance occasionally. Special projects are managed with little oversight and assignments may be reviewed upon completion. Performance reviewed periodically. 

Technical Skills

• Advanced: high level skills and extensive knowledge of federal, state and local code; and approaches which affect the design and implementation of major projects and processes. Independent judgment and decision-making abilities are necessary to apply technical skills effectively. Reviews documents for professional, technical, and content errors, and may be called on to review and revise more complex documents, interpret, and analyze technical and statistical information. Be able to logically back up decisions by code reference.

Fiscal Responsibilities

• No budgetary/fiscal responsibilities. 

Supervisory Responsibilities

• No formal supervisory responsibilities.

Other Characteristics

• Organizational and time managements skills, sometimes under strict time constraints. 
• Frequent change of tasks. 
• Working closely with others as part of a team. 
• Tedious and/or exacting work. 
• Performing multiple tasks simultaneously. 
• Constant interruptions and requests for service. 
• May work a non-traditional work schedule. 
• May require additional hours outside of normal schedule. 
• May require emergency response. 
• May require dealing with angry, frustrated and/or upset individuals. 

Other Qualifications

Physical Demands:

• Light Work: Exerting up to 25 pounds of force occasionally, and/or up to 10 pounds of force frequently, and/or a negligible amount of force constantly to lift, carry, push, pull or otherwise move objects.
• Field work requires traversing interior and exterior of buildings and structures including uneven terrain and obstructions. May include climbing, reaching, stooping, crawling, crouching, and balancing.  
• Operates a computer and other office productivity machinery, such as a calculator, copy machine, and computer printer. Occasionally moves about inside the office to access filing cabinets, office machinery, etc.
• Must be able to communicate information and ideas so others will understand.  Must be able to exchange accurate information in these situations. 
• Ability to observe details at close range (within a few feet of the observer). 

Machines, Tools, Equipment, Software and Hardware:

• Typically requires use of standard office equipment and telephone, and related software and hardware; and any other equipment as appropriate or as assigned.
• Utilizes construction tools and equipment necessary for inspections. 

Work Environment:

• A combination of on-site inspections and standard office environment. Required to climb, crawl and access various areas within or around buildings, properties and construction sites or during emergencies and in all weather conditions.
• Work requires visiting construction sites and exposure to extreme temperatures, extreme brightness or darkness, chemicals/hazardous waste, gases, electrical hazards, fumes/airborne particles. May encounter exposure to inclement weather, wet or humid conditions, uneven terrain, noise, fumes, dusts and pollen, animals/wildlife, and traffic.
• When performing work in an office environment there may be exposure to computer screen for extended periods of time, monitor glare and dust. 
• Noise level varies from moderate to loud depending on the work site. 

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