Posting number: FY2026-01514
Department: Behavioral Healthcare Services
Job classification: Building Maintenance Specialist I
Posting type: Open
Categories: Building Maintenance, Miscellaneous, Maintenance, Building & Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance
Under general supervision, performs skilled work in the maintenance and repair of buildings and facilities. Reports to the Assistant Director.
Performs a variety of building trade duties for the purpose of maintaining the department and other buildings and facilities; and uses a variety of tools and equipment to include circular saws, power drills, hammers, sanders, planes, and hand tools.
Performs preventive maintenance tasks around city buildings; inspects and identifies needed repair work; and empties trash receptacles and transports refuse and debris to designated containers and/or dumpsite.
Receives assignments from incoming work orders; determines work to be performed; determines and obtains materials and equipment needed; and plans sequence of work; prepares site for repair and/or construction of work; and removes trash and debris from the work site daily.
Performs other duties as assigned.
Knowledge of Job: Has general knowledge of the standard methods, materials and equipment employed in carpentry and construction work. Has some knowledge of cleaning and routine repair procedures and the use of construction materials and hand tools. Is able to perform general carpentry work. Is able to follow oral and written instructions. Is able to perform medium physical work. Is able to establish and maintain effective working relationships as necessitated by work assignments.
Quality of Work: Maintains high standards of accuracy in exercising duties and responsibilities. Exercises immediate corrective action to correct any quality of deficiencies that occur in areas of responsibility. Maintains high quality of communication and interacts within departments and division, and with co-workers and the general public.
Quantity of Work: Maintains effective and efficient output of all duties and responsibilities as described under “Essential Job Functions.”
Dependability: Assumes responsibility for doing assigned work and meeting deadlines. Completes assigned work on or before deadlines in accordance with directives, city policy, standards and prescribed procedures. Accepts accountability for meeting assigned responsibilities in the technical, human and conceptual areas.
Attendance: Attends work regularly and adheres to city policies and procedures regarding absences and tardiness. Provides adequate notice to higher management with respect to vacation time and time- off requests.
Initiative and Enthusiasm: Maintains an enthusiastic, self-reliant and self-starting approach to meet job responsibilities and accountabilities. Strives to anticipate work to be done and initiates proper and acceptable direction for completion of work with a minimum of supervision and instruction.
Judgment: Exercises analytical judgment in areas of responsibility. Identifies problems or situations as they occur and specifies decision objectives. Identifies or assists in identifying alternative solutions to problems or situations. Implements decisions in accordance with prescribed and effective policies and procedures and with a minimum of errors. Seeks expert or experienced advice and researches problems, situations and alternatives before exercising judgment.
Relationships with Others: Shares knowledge with supervisors and staff for mutual and departmental benefit. Contributes to maintaining high morale among all department employees. Develops and maintains cooperative and courteous relationships with department employees and managers in other departments, to project a good departmental image. Tactfully and effectively handles requests, suggestions and complaints from other departments and persons in order to maintain good will within the city. Emphasizes the importance of maintaining a positive image within the city. Interacts effectively with fellow employees, Building Maintenance Superintendent (Paint/Carpentry), professionals and the general public.
Coordination of Work: Plans and organizes daily work routine. Establishes priorities for the completion of work in accordance with sound time-management methodology. Avoids duplication of effort. Estimates expected time of completion of elements of work and establish a personal schedule accordingly. Attends meetings, planning sessions and discussions of time. Implements work activity in accordance with priorities and estimated schedules. Maintains a calendar for meetings and deadlines.
Safety and Housekeeping: Adheres to all safety and housekeeping standards established by the city and various regulatory agencies. Sees that the standards are not violated. Maintains a clean and orderly work place.
High School Diploma and 1-2 years of experience performing building repairs and maintenance; or any equivalent combination of training and experience which provides the required skills, knowledge and abilities.
An acceptable general background check to include a local, state, and federal criminal history check and sex offender registry check.
Individuals in this position cannot be listed as having a founded child abuse or neglect complaint.
This position requires pre-employment physical.
In the event of a declared emergency in the city of Portsmouth, individuals in this position are required to work shelter duty and may be called on to perform duties as required to provide for the safety and care of the citizens of the community.
Physical Requirements: Must be physically able to operate a variety of equipment and tools to include saws, hammers, drills, sanders, and hand tools. Must be able to exert up to 75 pounds of force occasionally, and/or up to 50 pounds of force frequently and/or up to 25 pounds of force constantly to move objects. Physical demand requirements are for Medium Work.
Data Conception: Requires the ability to compare and or judge the readily observable, functional, structural, or composite characteristics (whether similar to or divergent from obvious standards) of data, people or things.
Interpersonal Communication: Requires the ability to speak and or signal people to conveyor exchange information. Includes receiving instructions, assignments and/or directions from supervisors.
Language Ability: Requires the ability to read a variety of correspondence, reports, personnel records, applications, procedure manuals, forms, etc. Requires the ability to prepare correspondence, reports certificates, forms, logs, etc. Requires the ability to speak to people with poise, voice control and confidence.
Intelligence: Requires the ability to apply principles of logical or scientific thinking to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions. Requires the ability to assess critical situations and establish methods to resolve such situations.
Verbal Aptitude: Requires the ability to record and deliver information, to explain procedures, to follow oral and follow oral and written instructions. Must be able to communicate effectively and efficiently using standard English, and construction terminology.
Numerical Aptitude: Requires the ability to utilize mathematical formulas. Must be able to add, subtract, multiply, and divide.
Form/Spatial Aptitude: Requires the ability to inspect items for proper length, width and shape.
Motor Coordination: Requires the ability to coordinate hands and eyes rapidly and accurately in using construction and carpentry equipment and hand tools.
Manual Dexterity: Requires the ability to handle a variety of items, such as office equipment. Must have minimal levels of eye/hand/foot coordination.
Color Discrimination: Requires the ability to differentiate between colors and shades of color.
Interpersonal Temperament: Requires the ability to deal with people beyond giving and receiving instructions. Must be adaptable to performing under minimal levels of stress.
Physical Communication: Requires the ability to talk and/or hear: (talking - expressing or exchanging ideas by means of spoken words; hearing - perceiving nature of sounds by ear).
The City of Portsmouth is an Equal Opportunity Employer. ADA requires the City to provide reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities. Prospective and current employees are invited to discuss accommodations.
This is a class description and not an individual position description. A class specification defines the general character and scope of duties and responsibilities of all positions in a job classification, but is not intended to describe and does not necessarily list the essential job functions for a given position in a classification.
The City of Portsmouth was founded in 1752 and incorporated by the Virginia General Assembly in 1858. Over 250 years old, the city is home to one of the world's greatest natural harbors, situated on the James and Elizabeth Rivers, which empties into the Chesapeake Bay. Portsmouth, with a land area of approximately 33 square miles and a population of 96,066, is located in the heart of the Hampton Roads Region. It is bordered by Chesapeake and Suffolk, respectively, to the south and west and the City of Norfolk to the east.
The City of Portsmouth boasts 75.8 miles of shoreline and is home to Mile Marker Zero of the Atlantic Intercoastal Waterway, which stretches from Maine to Florida. Part of one of the world’s largest natural harbors, Portsmouth is just 18 miles from the open sea. Portsmouth's location on navigable waterways has been a dominant force in the City’s rich maritime history and economy. Its location on the over 40-feet-deep Hampton Roads shipping channel and the presence of both the CSX and Norfolk Southern Railroads allows Portsmouth to support national and international port commerce activities and the military presence in the region.
Portsmouth derives its governing authority from a charter granted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The City's governing body is the City Council, which formulates policies for the administration of the City. The City's charter provides for a Council-Manager form of government.
