The City of Manhattan, Kansas, is located in Riley County in the heart of northeast Kansas’ scenic Flint Hills. Known as the “Little Apple,” Manhattan is 120 miles west of Kansas City, just off Interstate 70, and encompasses approximately 18 square miles with a current population of roughly 55,000. The community serves a three-county, 130,000 population regional area as a leader in education, trade, healthcare, and communications.
The Public Utilities Department employs 61 full-time staff focused on the community’s utilities and managing its projects and processes. The team is responsible for Manhattan’s water and wastewater treatment plants, lift stations, elevated water storage tanks, water towers and booster stations, water distribution — including the meter reading system — and utility locates. The department also manages infrastructure maintenance projects, evaluates current processes and programs in areas like development review and asset management, ensures environmental compliance, and implements recommendations from the Water Master Plan Study and Wastewater Master Plan Study. Under the guidance of the Deputy City Manager, the Director of Public Utilities contributes to the overall quality of life in the City of Manhattan by providing leadership, management, and supervision to all aspects of the city’s Public Utilities, including Water/Wastewater, Utility Engineering, Finance, and Administrative Services/Customer Service.
The City of Manhattan is seeking a collaborative, charismatic, and innovative servant-leader with the skills and experience to lead the Public Utilities Department. This position requires a bachelor’s degree in public or business administration, civil or environmental engineering, or a related field, with a master’s degree preferred. Candidates should also have at least seven (7) years of progressively responsible experience in municipal government or utility management, including five (5) of administrative and supervisory experience. Local government experience is highly desirable, as is being licensed as a professional engineer in the State of Kansas. A combination of related education and experience that demonstrates the candidate’s knowledge, skills, and ability to perform the position’s essential duties may be considered.
Please note that while residency is not required for this position, the new hire will be asked to live within a 30-minute commute to ensure access during an emergency.
The full salary range for this position is $137,493 to $220,019, with a hiring range of $137,493 to $178,767, dependent upon experience and qualifications.
Please apply online.
For more information on this position, contact:
Marsha Reed, Sr. Vice President
MarshaReed@GovernmentResource.com
806-789-9641