Assistant Commissioner, Construction Services

Agency Description: The Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) oversees housing standards across all 3.7 million homes in New York City.

As the nation’s largest municipal housing agency, HPD is responsible for building and preserving affordable housing, protecting tenants from harassment and displacement, and holding landlords accountable across the five boroughs. Under Commissioner Dina Levy and the Mamdani Administration, HPD is pursuing an ambitious housing agenda focused on the needs of New York’s tenants. With a broad set of tools including standards enforcement, tenant resources, and the creation of new affordable housing, HPD is committed to making New York City a more affordable place for renters and homeowners alike.

Your Team: The Office of Development (OOD) leads the agency’s effort to create and preserve affordable housing in collaboration with other HPD offices as well as other city, state and federal agencies. The OOD is comprised of eight divisions that administer a range of programs. These divisions include New Construction Finance, Special Needs Housing, Housing Incentives, Building and Land Development Services (BLDS), Homeownership Opportunities and Preservation, Preservation Finance, Portfolio Management and Conversions, and Compliance and Enforcement.

The Division of Building and Land Development Services (BLDS) provides architectural, engineering, cost valuation, environmental planning, and construction support services to the various divisions within HPD’s Office of Development. BLDS is the largest division within the Office of Development with over 100 staff composed of seven units which include: the Bureau of New Construction Design Review Services, the Bureau of Preservation Design Review Services, the Bureau of Engineering, the Bureau of Construction Services, the Environmental Planning Unit, the Policy Unit, and the Program Management Unit.

The Assistant Commissioner for Construction Services will oversee teams who provide technical services during construction and post-construction, including but not limited to, the Bureau of Construction Services, which is responsible for providing construction monitoring and support services, and interagency assistance, to ensure quality and timely construction completion of HPD-assisted affordable housing projects.

Your Role: As Assistant Commissioner for Construction Services, you will report directly to the Associate Commissioner of BLDS and play a pivotal leadership role in advancing New York City’s affordable housing goals. You will assist the Associate Commissioner with implementing the goals and objectives of the Agency and the division, and have the opportunity to shape policy, improve processes, and oversee the production of affordable housing that strengthens neighborhoods and serves New Yorkers across all five boroughs.

The Assistant Commissioner for Construction Services will work closely with the Associate Commissioner to lead the agency’s construction completion and post-construction efforts and manage a large portfolio of affordable housing projects in housing production.

S/he will oversee a team of architects, engineers, and construction project managers responsible for advancing HPD-assisted projects through the construction, closeout, and post-construction phases in order to meet the Agency’s housing production goals.

The ideal candidate should have a background in Architecture, Urban Planning, Construction Management, Engineering, or related field, and possess a thorough understanding and strong knowledge base of New York City building and construction codes; Federal, State, and City housing codes and regulations; means and methods for the preservation and construction of multifamily housing; as well as experience in managing a large team of technical staff who conduct fieldwork.

Your Responsibilities:

• Provide leadership and technical expertise in managing a large portfolio of affordable housing projects from construction start through completion/contract closeout to meet the agency’s construction completion goals and ensure adherence to applicable construction codes, regulations, and HPD standards.
• Oversee a large team of technical staff, including architects, engineers, and construction professionals, engaged in monitoring the construction completion and closeout of HPD-assisted new construction and preservation projects.
• Perform managerial duties, including providing guidance to teams in achieving agency goals, establishing appropriate productivity measures, promoting collaboration among staff, and evaluating staff performance.
• Work closely with senior teams across the agency and division to meet housing production goals, and address technical- and policy-related matters pertaining to the construction of affordable housing.
• Utilize technical best practices and standards to guide the delivery of high quality, cost-effective, and sustainable affordable housing production.
• Prepare management and data analysis reports and presentations for the Associate Commissioner and senior management teams.
• Drive Process and Performance Improvements: Analyze workloads and workflows across teams to identify process enhancements, and assist in developing and implementing management tools and dashboards to enhance quality assurance and portfolio performance.
• Cross-Agency Collaboration: Lead coordination with internal/external stakeholders to align goals, initiatives, and processes. Build and maintain relationships and interface with NYC Agencies, including Department of Buildings, Fire Department, Department of Environmental Protection, private utilities, and others as necessary, to resolve impediments to project completion.
• Work closely with external partners, including developers, architects, and contractors, to resolve issues that may arise during construction.

Preferred Skills

• Strong knowledge of New York City construction codes, housing regulations, and affordable housing development practices.
• Demonstrated leadership experience managing diverse technical teams with varying disciplines, and experience with conducting fieldwork.
• Proven ability to manage large portfolios, track performance, and produce clear reports for executive decision-making.
• Excellent leadership writing, interpersonal, organizational, communication, leadership, and negotiation skills.
• Proficient in Microsoft Suite (Excel, Powerpoint, Teams and Word) and preparing presentation materials.
• Demonstrated ability to meet multiple deadlines, coordinate multiple projects, and deal with complex construction issues.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment, negotiate with diverse technical specialists, apply independent judgment in technical matters, take initiative, and work effectively with others.
• Possess OSHA 30-hr Construction Safety Certification within the last 5 calendar years.
• A Motor Vehicle Driver License valid in the State of New York may be required for certain assignments. If required, this license must be maintained for the duration of the assignment.

Minimum Qualifications

• A master’s degree from an accredited college in public administration, business administration, engineering, architecture, or comparable field, plus three years of satisfactory experience of a nature to qualify for the duties and responsibilities of the position, at least 18 months of which must have been in an administrative, managerial, or executive capacity or supervising personnel performing activities related to the duties of the position; or
• A bachelor’s degree from an accredited college and five years of satisfactory experience of a nature to qualify for the duties and responsibilities of the position, at least 18 months of which must have been in an administrative, managerial, or executive capacity or supervising personnel performing activities related to the duties of the position.

Note: A Motor Vehicle Driver License valid in the State of New York may be required for certain assignments. If required, this license must be maintained for the duration of the assignment

Residency Requirement

New York City residency is generally required within 90 days of appointment. However, City Employees in certain titles who have worked for the City for 2 continuous years may also be eligible to reside in Nassau, Suffolk, Putnam, Westchester, Rockland, or Orange County. To determine if the residency requirement applies to you, please discuss with the agency representative at the time of interview.