Mid and Senior Siting & Permitting Specialist (Richmond, VA)

Job Summary

Dominion Energy is installing 1,000MWac of solar generating capacity per year. The Solar Project Construction group manages the execution of solar projects from 1MW to 150+MW through Engineer-Procure-Construct (EPC) contracts. The group is organized into several sequential teams; Development, Permitting, Contracting, Pre-Construction, Execution, and Close-Out. Two Permitting Specialists are needed for the Permitting and Pre-Construction teams to help our Owner Engineers and EPC contractors navigate state and local permitting. These Permitting Specialists will work on teams lead by Construction Project Managers.

Responsibilities

• Work with technical and non-technical business owners/partners to overcome obstacles and deliver results
• Lead a collaborative development/pre-construction process for multiple new utility scale solar projects
• Manage projects and effectively influence, negotiate, and communicate with business partners including developers, real estate, construction managers, architects & engineers and EPC Contractors
• Evaluate site feasibility including locality requirements, environmental regulatory requirements
• Establish effective relationships and facilitate the development of local, state, and federal permits and schedules
• Review relevant project permitting, applications, and reports for missing information or plan deviations
• Manage development of decommissioning plans and bonding requirements to support project permitting 
• Diligence support of local, jurisdictional, and utility easements and encroachments to support project permitting
• Manage resources to ensure prompt information transfer and contract adherence
• Provide detailed oversight and support of engineering consultants/contractors and coordinate technical review of contractor-supplied deliverables
• Support environmental permitting coordination with Environmental Services personnel
• Support coordination between project teams, including construction, engineering, real estate, environmental, and project management, etc

Responsibilities continued

• Contribute to project completion related research, including state and local permitting, regulatory processes, and compliance to Conditional Use Permits / Special Use Permits issued by localities
• Work closely with Dominion real estate to establish easements/right-of-way agreements
• Work closely with Dominion Energy Virginia to establish encroachment agreements 
• Work closely with contractors, Dominion Operations, and Risk Management supporting Decommissioning Plans
• Work as Single Point Contact between Dominion Environmental Services and engineering consultants/contractors
• Coordinate review and submittal of Permits, including managing routing for signature.
• Establish, maintain, and update project specific files, databases, records, and other documents
• Guide, advise and train less experienced Siting and Permitting Specialists
• Occasional travel to solar project sites and to local government offices.
• Perform other duties as requested or assigned
• Will report to a Manager – Construction Projects and will be assigned to a team led by a Construction Project Manager. Two positions are available, one on the Permitting team and one on the Pre-Construction team.

Required Knowledge, Skills, Abilities & Experience

• Siting & Permitting Specialist: 3+ years related experience in land use, real estate and/or environmental (erosion and sediment control, stormwater management, wetlands protection) for large capital construction projects
• Senior Siting & Permitting Specialist: 5+ years related experience in land use, real estate and/or environmental (erosion and sediment control, stormwater management, wetlands protection) for large capital construction projects
• Ability to manage and prioritize assigned work on multiple concurrent solar projects
• Knowledge of local use permitting (ie, zoning), erosion & sediment control and stormwater management permitting, wetland permitting
• Ability to read and understand civil drawings
• Knowledge of local, state, and federal laws & permitting requirements for solar facility construction
• Must demonstrate strong attention to detail and the ability to solve complex problems with full transparency and adequate documentation
• Must be able to demonstrate excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Self-motivated, able to work both independently and collaboratively within a team
• Ability to build relationships and work in a team environment
• Ability to analyze technical information and make recommendations to project management team
• Demonstrated computer skills, including Microsoft Office and Adobe products
• Experience reviewing real estate documents, including leases, easements, ROW agreements, and encroachments (Preferred)
• Experience with software including GIS, CAD, Bluebeam (Preferred)

Education Requirements

Degree or an equivalent combination of education and demonstrated related experience may be accepted in lieu of preferred level of education:

Bachelor

Preferred Discipline: Business, Engineering, Environmental Science, Geology

Other disciplines may be substituted for the preferred disciplines(s) listed above.

Licenses, Certifications, or Quals Description

VA DEQ Certifications in Erosion & Sediment Control and Stormwater Management

Working Conditions

Test Description