Manager Arboriculture | Kaiwhakahaere Ahurākau

Porirua’s landscape is changing and we’re looking for people to help us manage growth and realise our aspirations for our city. With new transport links in place, new housing developments underway, and a refreshed focus on our harbour, beaches, wetland and waterways, we’re a diverse, well-connected city with significant opportunities. Join our team and help make our city a great place to live, work and raise a family.

About the role

As Manager Arboriculture, you’ll work closely with our Parks & City Services and Transport teams to manage all aspects of Porirua’s tree population. You’ll be Council’s go-to expert on arboriculture, providing trusted advice to elected members, colleagues, developers, residents and community groups.

You’ll lead the planning, delivery and continuous improvement of arboriculture services through strong asset management, effective contractor oversight and modern best practice.

Key responsibilities include:

• Managing external arboriculture contracts and ensuring best value, safety and service delivery
• Providing specialist technical advice across Council, including Transport, Planning and Resource Consents
• Contributing to asset management plans, budgets, capital programmes and long-term financial strategies
• Developing arboricultural plans, guidelines and policy
• Promoting modern arboriculture practices across Council and the wider community
• Managing tree asset data and monitoring service performance
• Leading responses to complex customer, political and risk-related issues
• Playing a key role in emergency and storm response planning and delivery

While this role has no direct reports, it has significant influence across Council and the city.

About you

You’re a confident, credible arboriculture professional with strong technical capability and the ability to operate effectively in a politically aware local government environment.

You’ll need to have:

• A tertiary qualification in arboriculture, parks and open spaces management, or a related field
• Several years’ experience managing arboriculture operations
• A recognised tree risk assessment qualification (VALID, TRAQ or QTRA)
• Proven contract management experience
• Experience working in central or local government, with sound political judgement
• Strong stakeholder management and communication skills
• Effective project management capability
• Excellent administrative and computer skills
• A full NZ driver licence
• A strong commitment to health and safety, diversity, and the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi

It would be a bonus if you also have:

• Experience managing local government tree assets or contracting to local government
• Membership of NZ Arb or the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA)

What you need to do now

If you’re ready to shape the future of our city’s trees, we’d love to hear from you. Please contact Lydia Mihaka on 021 227 9730 or Lydia.Mihaka@poriruacity.govt.nz for more information.

Porirua City embraces and values diversity and inclusion. We actively encourage applications by people from all backgrounds and are a member of Diversity Works. If you have any support or access requirements during our recruitment process, please let us know when you apply, and we’ll do our best to get you sorted.

You will need to apply via our careers centre: www.poriruacity.govt.nz/careers.

To find out more about working for Porirua City Watch this video

Applications close on Thursday 5 February 2026.