Careers & Opportunities

Date posted: 9/8/2026

Application deadline: 9/30/2026

 

POSITION SUMMARY

The Director of Facilities and Safety is responsible for the care, safety, cleanliness, operational readiness, and reliable functioning of Bartram’s Garden’s buildings, public spaces, grounds infrastructure, riverfront facilities, vehicle fleet, equipment, and other physical assets. 

Bartram’s Garden is a National Historic Landmark and active public park welcoming more than 125,000 visitors annually. The 50-acre campus encompasses 18th-century historic buildings; an active recreational trail; an African Diaspora-focused crop farm and production greenhouses; the only safe public river access on the tidal Schuylkill River; the country’s oldest surviving botanic garden and numerous heritage trees; and boundaries and access points shared with public housing, active freight rail, and privately owned brownfields. 

The Director leads preventive and corrective maintenance, facilities planning, custodial services, fleet and equipment management, site and workplace safety systems, and emergency preparedness. The Director ensures that staff have the equipment, training, procedures, and operational support necessary to carry out their work safely and that the Garden’s facilities and infrastructure are maintained to support year-round public use and programming.  

The position requires both strong systems management and practical field judgment. The Director must be able to anticipate needs, establish reliable maintenance and safety systems, coordinate staff and contractors, and respond effectively when unexpected conditions arise. 

The Director works closely with staff across all departments, with a particularly close working relationship with Horticulture and Public Programs and Operations. The organization’s work depends upon a safe, clean, well-maintained, and well-functioning site. 

 

CORE RESPONSIBILITIES 

 

1. CARE OF PLACE

Facilities, Site Infrastructure & Preventive Maintenance 

• Lead the ongoing care, maintenance, repair, and operational stewardship of Bartram’s Garden’s buildings and building systems, facilities, grounds infrastructure, and riverfront infrastructure. 

• Develop and maintain a comprehensive preventive and cyclical maintenance program for buildings, building systems, site infrastructure, and physical assets and ensure that work is completed and documented. This includes specialized systems such as the geothermal heating and cooling system serving the historic Bartram House. 

• Oversee routine repairs, emergency repairs, and small facilities improvement projects. 

• Maintain systems for identifying, prioritizing, assigning, tracking, and completing facilities work. 

• Conduct regular inspections of facilities and infrastructure to identify maintenance needs and potential safety hazards before they become emergencies. 

• Coordinate specialized maintenance and repair work with qualified contractors and vendors. 

• Support appropriate maintenance and stewardship of historic buildings and structures in coordination with other staff and qualified contractors and vendors as needed. 

• Participate in planning for long-term replacement, repair, and investment in physical assets. 

 

 

Custodial Services & Public-Space Readiness 

• Lead and supervise custodial services for the Garden’s public and staff facilities, including year-round and seasonal custodial staff. 

• Establish and maintain high standards for the cleanliness, sanitation, appearance, and readiness of public spaces, offices, meeting and program spaces, and staff facilities. 

• Ensure that public restrooms are consistently clean, functional, well-stocked, and welcoming throughout operating hours, with service schedules adjusted for seasonal visitation, programs, and major events. 

• Develop and oversee daily and weekly cleaning schedules as well as periodic deep cleaning of buildings and public facilities. 

• Establish inspection and accountability systems to ensure that custodial standards are consistently met. 

• Maintain appropriate inventories of restroom supplies, cleaning products, custodial equipment, and related materials. 

• Ensure custodial staff receive appropriate training in chemical handling, PPE, bloodborne pathogens, and other relevant workplace safety practices. 

• Coordinate waste removal, recycling, pest management, and other sanitation-related services. 

• Work closely with Public Programs and Operations to anticipate increased custodial and facility-readiness needs associated with programs, events, rentals, and periods of high visitation. 

 

Riverfront, Docks & Water-Based Infrastructure 

• Oversee the operational condition and routine maintenance of the Garden’s docks, river access points, FloatLab, and other water-based or waterfront infrastructure. 

• Establish regular inspection and preventive maintenance protocols for docks, gangways, railings, flotation systems, pumps, access systems, safety equipment, and related infrastructure. 

• Coordinate specialized inspections, servicing, and repairs by marine, structural, electrical, or other qualified contractors as necessary. 

• Work closely with program staff to ensure that riverfront facilities are safe and operational for public programs, education, boating, and other authorized activities. 

• Establish clear procedures for closing or restricting access to waterfront infrastructure when weather, river conditions, mechanical problems, or other hazards make use unsafe. 

• Maintain appropriate emergency and rescue equipment associated with riverfront operations. 

 

Fleet, Tools & Equipment 

• Manage the Garden’s fleet of vehicles, utility vehicles, trailers, heavy equipment, power tools, and other facilities equipment. 

• Establish and maintain inspection, preventive maintenance, repair, replacement, registration, and service schedules. 

• Maintain accurate records of vehicle and equipment condition, maintenance, repairs, warranties, and replacement needs. 

• Develop and enforce procedures governing authorized use of vehicles, machinery, tools, and specialized equipment. 

• Ensure that staff operating vehicles and equipment have received appropriate training and authorization. 

• Oversee the maintenance shop, tool storage, fueling and charging systems, and maintenance supplies. 

• Develop multi-year replacement plans and annual budget recommendations for fleet and major equipment. 

 

Facilities & Horticulture Coordination 

The Garden’s buildings, infrastructure, landscape, living collections, public spaces, and operational systems form an interconnected campus. The Facilities and Horticulture teams therefore require an especially close and collaborative working relationship. 

• Maintain a strong working partnership with the Director of Horticulture and Horticulture team in caring for the Garden’s physical campus. 

• Coordinate work that intersects across paths and roads, drainage and stormwater systems, irrigation and water infrastructure, utilities, fencing, site furnishings, landscape structures, trees and vegetation adjacent to buildings and infrastructure, and other shared areas of responsibility. 

• Develop coordinated seasonal work plans for site preparation, storm response, snow and ice management, major cleanup efforts, event readiness, and other work requiring both Facilities and Horticulture staff. 

• Coordinate scheduling and use of shared vehicles, heavy equipment, tools, work areas, and other operational resources. 

• Work collaboratively to identify and address conditions in which infrastructure affects the health of the landscape, or landscape conditions affect buildings, utilities, paths, public safety, or other infrastructure. 

• Coordinate contractor access and facilities work in sensitive landscape areas to protect living collections, soils, historic landscape features, and other resources. 

• Participate collaboratively in long-range planning to ensure that facilities, horticultural, maintenance, operational, and landscape-stewardship considerations inform future investments. 

• Foster a culture of shared stewardship in which Facilities and Horticulture staff work collaboratively across departmental boundaries while maintaining clear areas of responsibility and accountability. 

 

1. SAFETY & RESILIENCE

 

Site & Workplace Safety 

• Serve as the organization’s lead for site and workplace safety systems, working in close partnership with the Human Resources Director and departmental leaders. 

• Lead the organization’s Safety Working Group and coordinate development, review, and implementation of safety policies and procedures. Work closely with the Garden ambassador and their role in monitoring the site regularly.  

• Conduct regular site safety inspections and work with staff to identify and correct hazards. 

• Develop clear protocols for higher-risk activities, including use of power tools and heavy equipment, work at heights, confined or restricted spaces, waterfront work, severe weather, hazardous materials, and other activities requiring specialized procedures. 

• Ensure that appropriate personal protective equipment is available, maintained, and used. 

• Maintain Safety Data Sheets, chemical inventories, labeling, and required safety documentation. 

• Ensure that first-aid kits, AEDs, fire extinguishers, spill-response materials, emergency equipment, and other safety supplies are appropriately located, inspected, stocked, and maintained. 

• Track safety incidents, near misses, and identify hazards and ensure appropriate follow-up and corrective action. 

• Foster a strong organizational safety culture in which staff understand that unsafe conditions should be reported promptly, and work should stop when conditions cannot be made safe. 

 

 

 

Safety Training & Staff Readiness 

• Develop and maintain a coordinated safety training program for staff in partnership with Human Resources and department directors. 

• Provide or coordinate baseline site safety and emergency procedure training as part of employee onboarding. 

• Establish recurring training and refresher schedules for staff. 

• Coordinate specialized training and certification required for particular equipment, vehicles, tools, work activities, or facilities. 

• Maintain records of required safety training and certifications. 

• Ensure that supervisors understand their responsibilities for enforcing safety procedures within their teams. 

• Conduct drills and practical exercises so that emergency procedures are understood and usable in real-world situations. 

 

Emergency Preparedness & Response 

• Lead organizational planning for site emergencies, operational disruptions, and disaster readiness. 

• Develop, maintain, and regularly update the Garden’s emergency response and continuity procedures. 

• Establish clear protocols for emergencies including severe weather, flooding, fire, utility failure, hazardous materials or unexplained environmental conditions, infrastructure failure, river emergencies, security incidents, medical emergencies, and other significant site disruptions. 

• Maintain clear procedures for evacuation, shelter-in-place, site closure, emergency communications, and reopening. 

• Maintain up-to-date emergency contact information and response relationships with appropriate City agencies, utilities, emergency responders, security partners, contractors, neighboring institutions, and community contacts. 

• Ensure that emergency knowledge, contacts, and relationships are institutionalized and accessible rather than dependent upon any one staff member. 

• Maintain emergency supplies and identify critical equipment, systems, vendors, and resources necessary for continued operations. 

• Conduct periodic emergency exercises and after-action reviews and update procedures based on lessons learned. 

• Participate in organizational response during emergencies and coordinate facilities-related recovery and reopening. 

 

III. OPERATIONAL SUPPORT 

 

Facilities Support for Programs, Events & Public Use 

• Work closely with Public Programs and Operations, Youth Education, Community Partnerships, Sankofa Community Farm, Development, and other departments to ensure that indoor and outdoor spaces are safe, functional, accessible, and ready to support programs, events, meetings, rentals, and community use. 

• Participate in advance planning for major programs and events to identify facilities, equipment, staffing, safety, access, power, lighting, sanitation, waste removal, setup, breakdown, and other operational requirements. 

• Establish clear processes and reasonable lead times through which departments request Facilities support for programs and events. 

• Coordinate Facilities staff and resources for appropriate setup, breakdown, site preparation, and restoration associated with organizational programs and events. 

• Ensure that indoor program spaces are operational and appropriately prepared, including building systems, furnishings, utilities, access, and other facilities requirements. 

• Ensure that outdoor program areas, trails, riverfront spaces, gathering areas, and other public-use locations are evaluated and prepared for safe use. 

• Coordinate temporary infrastructure and vendor services when needed, including power, lighting, sanitation, waste and recycling, barriers, tents, and other event-support systems. 

• Work with program staff to develop contingency plans for severe weather, infrastructure problems, site closures, and other conditions that may affect scheduled activities. 

• Balance program and event support with preventive maintenance and other core Facilities responsibilities through clear organizational systems for scheduling, prioritization, and communication. 

 

Site Readiness & Cross-Departmental Operations 

• Coordinate seasonal site-readiness work and larger maintenance efforts across departments. 

• Anticipate facilities and logistical needs associated with changing patterns of public use, seasonal operations, and new facilities. 

• Establish clear systems for communicating temporary hazards, closures, maintenance work, and operational changes to staff. 

• Coordinate facilities response to conditions affecting the safe and effective operation of the Garden. 

• Work collaboratively with departmental leaders to resolve operational issues that cross departmental responsibilities. 

 

Capital Projects & Transition to Operations 

• Participate in planning for new facilities and capital improvements to ensure that long-term maintenance, safety, access, staffing, custodial, equipment, and operational requirements are considered during design and construction. 

• Provide facilities and operational expertise to Capital Projects staff, consultants, designers, and contractors as appropriate. 

• Support the transition of completed capital projects into ongoing Garden operations. 

• Ensure that warranties, operating manuals, inspection requirements, preventive maintenance schedules, vendor relationships, replacement expectations, staff training, and other operational information are established and transferred to the Facilities team before project closeout. 

• Identify future operating and maintenance costs associated with new facilities and infrastructure to support organizational budgeting and planning. 

 

1. MANAGEMENT & SYSTEMS

 

Staff Supervision & Team Leadership 

• Supervise Facilities and custodial staff, garden ambassador, seasonal employees, contractors, and volunteers as appropriate. 

• Establish clear work plans, priorities, performance expectations, and accountability for the Facilities team. 

• Develop staff skills and support cross-training so that essential operational knowledge is shared across the team. 

• Establish effective systems for daily work assignments, work-order management, communication, and follow-through. 

• Build a Facilities culture that values preventive maintenance, responsiveness, safety, collaboration, and stewardship. 

Vendor & Contract Management 

• Manage facilities-related service contracts and vendor relationships, including building systems, fleet maintenance, equipment service, waste and recycling, pest management, fire protection, specialized waterfront services, and other operational services. 

• Develop scopes of work, solicit estimates, coordinate contractor access, and monitor quality and completion of work. 

• Maintain appropriate records of contracts, warranties, inspections, service schedules, and vendor performance. 

• Develop reliable relationships with specialized vendors and contractors who can respond to routine and emergency needs. 

 

Budget & Asset Planning 

• Develop and manage annual facilities, fleet, equipment, custodial, and safety budgets in coordination with Finance and organizational leadership. 

• Maintain records of facilities expenditures and assist with forecasting significant repair and replacement needs. 

• Develop multi-year forecasts for major building systems, infrastructure, fleet, equipment, and other physical assets. 

• Recommend cost-effective approaches that balance immediate operational needs with responsible long-term stewardship. 

 

Documentation & Organizational Systems 

• Maintain accurate and accessible facilities records, including maintenance histories, inspection records, equipment inventories, warranties, manuals, safety records, emergency procedures, and relevant site documentation. 

• Work collaboratively with other departments to maintain accurate maps, infrastructure information, building documentation, and institutional records. 

• Establish systems that ensure critical operational knowledge is documented, accessible, and transferable. 

• Participate in relevant Board committee meetings and organizational planning as requested. 

 

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE 

The successful candidate will bring a combination of facilities-management expertise, strong operational judgment, commitment to workplace and public safety, and the ability to manage a complex and highly active public site. 

Preferred qualifications include: 

• Significant experience in facilities management, site operations, building maintenance, property management, public works, campus operations, parks, or a related field. 

• Demonstrated experience developing preventive maintenance and asset-management systems. 

• Experience managing staff, contractors, vendors, budgets, and multiple concurrent priorities. 

• Knowledge of workplace and site safety practices and experience implementing safety procedures and training. 

• Experience with emergency preparedness, incident response, or continuity planning. 

• Experience managing vehicle fleets, machinery, tools, or similar operational assets. 

• Ability to understand building systems and diagnose maintenance and operational problems. 

• Experience supervising custodial or other site-services functions is desirable. 

• Strong practical judgment and the ability to respond calmly and effectively to unexpected situations. 

• Strong organizational skills and demonstrated ability to build reliable systems and ensure follow-through. 

• Ability to communicate clearly and work collaboratively with staff with widely varying professional and technical backgrounds. 

• Commitment to maintaining a safe, welcoming, clean, and well-functioning public environment. 

• Experience with parks, historic properties, public gardens, campuses, waterfront facilities, or complex outdoor sites is highly desirable. 

• The administrative components of this position require the ability to sit/stand at a desk, work on a computer, and use a monitor for extended periods of time. 

 

 

KEY MEASURES OF SUCCESS 

Success in this position will include: 

• A functioning preventive maintenance system with clear schedules, documentation, and accountability. 

• Fewer avoidable emergency repairs and operational disruptions. 

• Reliable and well-maintained buildings, docks, FloatLab infrastructure, vehicles, tools, and equipment. 

• Clean, well-maintained and consistently stocked public restrooms and facilities. 

• Public spaces that demonstrate a visible standard of care and readiness. 

• Clear safety policies that are understood and consistently followed across departments. 

• Staff appropriately trained for the equipment and activities required by their jobs. 

• Emergency plans that are current, practiced, accessible, and understood. 

• Strong documentation of facilities, maintenance, safety, emergency, and asset-management systems. 

• A highly functional partnership between Facilities and Horticulture in the stewardship of the Garden’s physical campus. 

• Reliable and well-planned Facilities support for indoor and outdoor programs, events, and public use. 

• Effective working relationships with departments across the organization. 

• A Facilities team that is organized, responsive, accountable, and increasingly preventive rather than reactive. 

• A culture in which staff recognize hazards, communicate concerns, and take shared responsibility for the safety and stewardship of Bartram’s Garden. 

 

  

SCHEDULE AND COMPENSATION 

This is a full-time, year-round position. Our site is open daily, and the Director of Facilities and Safety will be required to work Monday – Friday with on call duties—as well as occasional holidays, weekends, early mornings and late nights throughout the year. Starting yearly salary is between $80,000-85,000, depending on experience. Benefits include healthcare and dental coverage, short and long-term disability coverage, paid holidays, sick and vacation time. 

 

  

ABOUT BARTRAM’S GARDEN: 
Bartram’s Garden is a 50-acre public park and National Historic Landmark in Southwest Philadelphia, situated on Lenape territory on the banks of the Tidal Schuylkill River. Welcoming more than 125,000 visitors annually, it is a venue for art, and access to the tidal river and wetlands, an outdoor classroom, and a living laboratory. Bartram’s Garden attempts to hold the colonial legacy of the land with a commitment to learn and share the whole truth about the plants of Southwest Philadelphia and the people who grow them. The site encompasses the Bartram family’s 18th-century house and farm buildings, the country’s oldest surviving botanic garden, a reclaimed meadow, tidal wetlands, the Sankofa Community Farm, recreational trails, and the riverfront with an accessible public boat dock and community boathouse. 

 

The Garden is operated and maintained by the non-profit John Bartram Association in cooperation with the City of Philadelphia Parks and Recreation Department. The mission of the John Bartram Association is to co-create equitable relationships among people and nature through immersive, community-centered experiences that activate the Bartram legacy, Garden, and House, on land and on the Schuylkill River, in Southwest Philadelphia. 

 

Bartram’s Garden has been working to build its local Southwest-focused programs and activities and strengthen its community partnerships with nearby families, schools, and neighborhood groups. Thanks to plans for significant upcoming site investments, including major construction projects and expanded partnerships, the Garden is in the midst of transformation, with unprecedented opportunities for growth and renewal. 

  

Application Information: 
To apply please send your resume along with a brief note describing your interest in the position to . Only those whose applications are being considered will be contacted. No phone calls, please. 

Deadline for applications: September 30, 2026 

 The John Bartram Association is an equal opportunity employer and considers applicants for all positions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, gender, national origin, age, disability, marital or veteran status, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected status.