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New York City / Department of Parks & Recreation / Forester

Job-title file

Forester

Carry out the duties of this position in support of the agency's public mission.

59 employees hold this title in Department of Parks & Recreation. Median total compensation for the role is $70,032, above the department median of $17,347.

Employees
59
Total payroll
$3.9M
Role median
$70,032
Agency median
$17,347
Comparison
Above

What the records show

Role pay distribution

Pay distribution for this role

$4,997$85,189+

Hover a bar for its range; click to filter the list below.

How total compensation varies among the 59 people in this role. Even for one job title, pay differs with seniority, step, overtime, and tenure. Each bar is a pay range; the far-right bar collects the highest earners.

Compared with the local labor market

Forester pay vs. the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ area

Across all employers in the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ area, the median wage for Foresters — about 90 people — is $69,620. Department of Parks & Recreation pays a median base salary of $69,099 for this role, in line with that figurebelow the 10th percentile of local pay for the occupation.

Where Department of Parks & Recreation sits in the local pay range

10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
$69,570
$69,620
$69,620
$80,170
$92,150
Department of Parks & Recreation median · $69,099

The bar is the range of annual wages for Foresters across every employer in the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ area, from the 10th to the 90th percentile, with the middle 50% highlighted. The marker shows Department of Parks & Recreation’s median base salary for this role. Both figures are base pay only.

And across the country

Nationwide, the median wage for Foresters — about 10,430 people — is $76,400. Department of Parks & Recreation’s median base salary is 10% below that national figure, about the 37th percentile of pay for the occupation nationally.

10th
25th
Median
75th
90th
$50,790
$62,710
$76,400
$91,640
$109,700
Department of Parks & Recreation median · $69,099

Local and national wages differ for reasons beyond how well a job pays — cost of living, the mix of employers, and local demand for the occupation all move the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ range relative to the national one.

Computed over the 55 of 59 people in this role paid at least $25,000in base salary. The rest are part-year or part-time records, whose actual pay isn’t comparable to a full-time annual wage.

Median total compensation for this role at Department of Parks & Recreation is $70,032, which includes overtime and employer-paid benefits. The benchmark above excludes both, so total compensation is deliberately not compared against it.

Benchmark: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025). BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) covers all employers in the area — private, non-profit, and government alike — so this is a comparison against the whole local labor market for the occupation, not against private-sector pay. OEWS wages are straight-time pay and exclude overtime, shift differentials, and employer-paid benefits, so the government figure shown here is base pay on the same basis. Total compensation is not comparable to it. Job titles are matched to the closest standard occupation, so the comparison is between similar work rather than an identical job classification.

Compare departments

This role across New York City

Forester is held in 2 New York City departments. In Department of Parks & Recreation, the median of $70,032 ranks #1 of 2.

Highest-paying departments for this role

Median total compensation for the Forester role in other New York Citydepartments (highest first). Each bar links to that department’s page for this role.

Compare jurisdictions

Forester beyond New York City

This role is reported in 12 jurisdictions. In New York City, the median of $69,977 ranks #4 of 12. See Forester across all of New York City

Highest-paying jurisdictions for this role

California
$169,544 · 175
Maine
$72,866 · 53
Georgia
$61,203 · 53
Tennessee
$60,780 · 41
South Carolina
$60,179 · 24
Arkansas
$58,700 · 37
Florida
$52,530 · 43

Median total compensation for comparable Foresterroles in other jurisdictions. Titles are matched by normalized name across sources, not identical job classification, and pay is not cost-of-living adjusted. Each bar links to that jurisdiction’s page for the role.

Record list

Employees with this title

Page 1

Vernon Zoeckler

Forester/Department of Parks & Recreation

2025 total comp
$87,034
Base pay
$81,004
Overtime
$3,457
Other pay
$2,573
Benefits
$0
Total compensation
$87,034
Hire date
2017-08-28
Pay basis
Annual
Work city
Queens
Middle name
T

Source-specific fields

Base Salary
$85,181
Leave Status as of June 30
Active
Overtime Hours
62.25
Payroll Number
846
Regular Hours
1,820

Vernon Zoeckler works as a Forester for Department of Parks & Recreation based in Queens. Hired in 2017, they have about 8 years of service. Vernon earned $87,034 in 2025.

William Murphy

Forester/Department of Parks & Recreation

2025 total comp
$85,579
Base pay
$81,026
Overtime
$2,088
Other pay
$2,465
Benefits
$0
Total compensation
$85,579
Hire date
2019-07-22
Pay basis
Annual
Work city
Queens
Middle name
A

Source-specific fields

Base Salary
$85,181
Leave Status as of June 30
Active
Overtime Hours
34.75
Payroll Number
846
Regular Hours
1,820

William Murphy is a Forester at Department of Parks & Recreation based in Queens. Their tenure dates to 2019, about 6 years. 2025 total compensation came to $85,579.

Vincent Urwand

Forester/Department of Parks & Recreation

2025 total comp
$83,136
Base pay
$80,858
Overtime
$370
Other pay
$1,909
Benefits
$0
Total compensation
$83,136
Hire date
2018-09-04
Pay basis
Annual
Work city
Queens
Middle name
S

Source-specific fields

Base Salary
$85,181
Leave Status as of June 30
Active
Overtime Hours
7
Payroll Number
846
Regular Hours
1,820

At Department of Parks & Recreation, Vincent Urwand serves as a Forester based in Queens. Their tenure dates to 2018, about 7 years. Their 2025 pay totaled $83,136.

Rachel Grumm

Forester/Department of Parks & Recreation

2025 total comp
$83,086
Base pay
$81,026
Overtime
$0
Other pay
$2,060
Benefits
$0
Total compensation
$83,086
Hire date
2017-12-07
Pay basis
Annual
Work city
Queens
Middle name
M

Source-specific fields

Base Salary
$85,181
Leave Status as of June 30
Active
Overtime Hours
0
Payroll Number
846
Regular Hours
1,820

Rachel Grumm holds the role of Forester at Department of Parks & Recreation based in Queens. Their tenure dates to 2017, about 8 years. In 2025, their total compensation was $83,086.

Hugh Reed

Forester/Department of Parks & Recreation

2025 total comp
$83,036
Base pay
$81,142
Overtime
$390
Other pay
$1,504
Benefits
$0
Total compensation
$83,036
Hire date
2019-08-05
Pay basis
Annual
Work city
Queens
Middle name
W

Source-specific fields

Base Salary
$85,181
Leave Status as of June 30
Active
Overtime Hours
6
Payroll Number
846
Regular Hours
1,820

Hugh Reed is a Forester at Department of Parks & Recreation based in Queens. Their tenure dates to 2019, about 6 years. 2025 total compensation came to $83,036.

Priscilla Lin

Forester/Department of Parks & Recreation

2025 total comp
$82,771
Base pay
$75,876
Overtime
$4,653
Other pay
$2,242
Benefits
$0
Total compensation
$82,771
Hire date
2017-01-30
Pay basis
Annual
Work city
Manhattan

Source-specific fields

Base Salary
$79,503
Leave Status as of June 30
Active
Overtime Hours
89
Payroll Number
846
Regular Hours
1,820

Priscilla Lin is a Forester at Department of Parks & Recreation based in Manhattan. Their tenure dates to 2017, about 8 years. 2025 total compensation came to $82,771.

Benjamin Mertz

Forester/Department of Parks & Recreation

2025 total comp
$82,083
Base pay
$81,026
Overtime
$0
Other pay
$1,057
Benefits
$0
Total compensation
$82,083
Hire date
2020-03-23
Pay basis
Annual
Work city
Queens
Middle name
K

Source-specific fields

Base Salary
$85,181
Leave Status as of June 30
Active
Overtime Hours
0
Payroll Number
846
Regular Hours
1,820

At Department of Parks & Recreation, Benjamin Mertz serves as a Forester based in Queens. Hired in 2020, they have about 5 years of service. Their 2025 pay totaled $82,083.

Bret Coffey

Forester/Department of Parks & Recreation

2025 total comp
$81,306
Base pay
$78,514
Overtime
$1,558
Other pay
$1,234
Benefits
$0
Total compensation
$81,306
Hire date
2019-12-02
Pay basis
Annual
Work city
Queens
Middle name
S

Source-specific fields

Base Salary
$85,181
Leave Status as of June 30
Active
Overtime Hours
29
Payroll Number
846
Regular Hours
1,820

Bret Coffey works as a Forester for Department of Parks & Recreation based in Queens. Their tenure dates to 2019, about 6 years. Bret earned $81,306 in 2025.