Senior Project Manager, Construction & Club Operations

The Opportunity

Chelsea Piers Fitness Development Team prides itself on delivering large-scale, architecturally distinct fitness and wellness spaces. Each CPF 50,000 SF luxury fitness club contains signature amenities and special features ranging from indoor and outdoor pools to hot tubs and cold plunge pools, and an expansive range of exercise facilities from yoga to cardio and strength. Each club also features a member's lounge.

CPF is undergoing a growth phase, opening several new clubs over the next four years.

• The Senior Construction Project Manager will work closely with the SVP of Construction to take completed construction documents from the development team, run a rigorous competitive bid process, and manage the selected general contractor through delivery under a cost-plus contract model.
• This role will also be responsible for overseeing maintenance strategy and contracts for the CPF fleet of pools and select MEP systems across all clubs.

Goal

Own the construction procurement and delivery phase across all active CPF projects — from receipt of completed construction documents through contractor selection, construction execution, and project closeout. Bring the technical depth to manage a cost-plus general contractor with rigor, the MEP knowledge to evaluate systems and costs critically, and the process discipline to keep concurrent projects on schedule and on budget.

Core Responsibilities

Bid Management & Contractor Procurement

• Receive completed construction document packages from the development team and lead the full bid process from scoping through award.
• Develop comprehensive bid packages — scope of work, instructions to bidders, bid leveling templates, and clarification logs.
• Qualify and solicit general contractors; conduct pre-bid walkthroughs and manage the qualification and proposal process.
• Critically evaluate and level bids across all CSI divisions, including MEP, structural, and specialty systems — identifying gaps, exclusions, and pricing anomalies.
• Negotiate contract terms, cost-plus structures, and general conditions with selected contractors; drive favorable outcomes on scope, fee, and risk allocation.
• Present bid analysis and contractor recommendation to the SVP of Construction and VP of Development.

Construction Execution & Contractor Management

• Serve as Chelsea Piers Fitness's primary owner's representative on site across all active projects.
• Represent CPF at weekly OAC meetings, construction progress reviews, and site walks; maintain detailed meeting minutes and action logs.
• Review and certify contractor pay applications under the cost-plus contract model; validate labor, material, and equipment costs against the approved budget.
• Manage the change order process — evaluate contractor claims, negotiate scope and pricing, and maintain change order logs.
• Track construction schedule against the master program; flag delays early and drive recovery plans with the GC.
• Coordinate owner-furnished equipment and FF&E delivery windows with the development team and GC.

MEP & Technical Oversight

• Apply deep MEP knowledge to review mechanical, electrical, and plumbing scopes during bidding and construction — including natatorium mechanical, sauna and steam, high-humidity HVAC, and fitness equipment power.
• Evaluate MEP subcontractor qualifications, scope coverage, and pricing during the bid process.
• Monitor MEP rough-in, coordination drawings, and systems installation for conformance with construction documents.
• Lead commissioning and startup of all building systems alongside specialty contractors and commissioning agents.
• Oversee maintenance contracts for the CPF pool fleet and select MEP systems across all existing clubs.

Cost Control & Reporting

• Maintain the project cost report under the cost-plus model — tracking committed costs, actual costs, and projected final cost against the approved budget.
• Produce monthly cost reports for the SVP of Construction and Development Manager.
• Manage construction contingency usage; escalate overruns and variances with recommended corrective action.
• Ensure the GC's cost-plus books are open and auditable; conduct periodic cost audits and validate general conditions charges.
• Develop and track key performance indicators across cost, schedule, and quality to measure contractor performance and project health.

Closeout & Existing Portfolio

• Lead punch list, substantial completion, and final closeout — including commissioning reports, O&M manuals, warranties, and as-built documentation.
• Manage capital improvement and refresh projects across existing Chelsea Piers Fitness clubs — scoping, bidding, and overseeing contractors on live-site work with minimal disruption to members.

What Success Looks Like

• First 60 days: Fully embedded in all active projects. Bid packages drafted or in process for the nearest project. Cost-plus reporting framework established.
• 6 months: First club bid awarded to selected GC. Cost-plus tracking live. MEP bid leveling completed and subcontractors selected.
• 12 months: Two clubs under active construction with weekly OAC cadence, clean cost report, and no unresolved change orders older than 30 days.
• 18 months: Existing portfolio capital program running cleanly. A repeatable CPF bid and construction management playbook in place.

Candidate Profile

Experience

• 8–14 years of construction project management experience, with a significant portion on owner's side or owner's representative work.
• Demonstrated track record running cost-plus or GMP construction contracts — including open-book cost management, pay application review, and general conditions auditing.
• Proven experience managing the full bid process: developing bid packages, conducting trade-by-trade leveling, negotiating with GCs and subcontractors, and making award recommendations.
• Experience with complex, large-format interior fit-out or ground-up construction — fitness, hospitality, aquatics, or similarly high-specification programs strongly preferred.
• Exposure to managing multiple concurrent projects is a strong plus.

Technical Skills

• Deep working knowledge of mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems — enough to scope MEP packages independently, level MEP bids critically, and identify gaps or overpricing without relying solely on the design team.
• Specific familiarity with high-humidity and natatorium HVAC, sauna and steam systems, pool mechanical, and commercial fitness equipment power requirements is highly valued.
• Ability to read and critically evaluate full construction document sets across all disciplines — architectural, structural, MEP, civil, and specialty.
• Working knowledge of BIM coordination and clash detection processes in a construction context.
• Familiarity with commissioning requirements for complex building systems.

Competencies

The right candidate brings more than technical knowledge — they operate with a specific set of working habits that define how they show up on site and with their teams.

• Keeps the cost-plus model honest. Validates every charge, questions general conditions items that don't pass scrutiny, and manages owner contingency as if it were their own money. Cost discipline.
• Holds a GC accountable without destroying the relationship. Direct, fair, and commercially sharp — knows the difference between a legitimate change and an opportunistic one. Contractor management.
• Does not just report delays — drives recovery plans and keeps the GC's feet to the fire on milestones. Understands the downstream effect of slippage across a concurrent portfolio. Schedule ownership.
• Builds and maintains strong relationships with subcontractors, vendors, and specialty contractors. Uses those relationships to get better pricing, faster responses, and more reliable performance across projects. Supplier and subcontractor relationships.
• Produces cost reports, OAC minutes, and change order logs that give leadership real visibility without noise. Communicates problems early and with a recommended path forward. Clear reporting.
• Comfortable and credible on site — reads the job, builds relationships with supers and foremen, and catches problems before they become formal issues. Site credibility.
• Builds a strong maintenance program for all CPF pools across all clubs, and serves as point of contact for all pool technical questions and repairs.

Credentials

• Bachelor's degree in Construction Management, Civil or Mechanical Engineering, or related field required.
• CCM, PMP, or LEED AP a plus — but strong experience takes precedence over credentials.

Compensation

Full-time, salaried position based in New York with regular travel to active construction sites across the portfolio. Compensation is competitive with senior owner-side construction management roles at comparable development and operating companies in the New York market — inclusive of base salary, performance bonus, and benefits.

Salary : $150,000 - $200,000