<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=4SNDHf_0vjyTH8X00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=4SNDHf_0vjyTH8X00" width="1290" height="726" ><figcaption>Ipswich's new planning director Alan Manoian (Screenshot from Town of Ipswich video)</figcaption></figure>Please Support Local Advertisers440IPSWICH — He’s been Ipswich’s planning director for a couple of weeks now, but Lowell native Alan Manoian still has to pinch himself each morning as he commutes into town.“As I’m driving in, I’m like: ‘Wow. I’m really in Ipswich. How cool,'” he said.“This is one of the most revered townships in all of New England. It truly is a special place. I just feel so very fortunate and privileged to be here.”Manoian replaces former planning director Brendan Conboy, who departed in June after less than a year on the job to take a position with a renewable energy developer.“We were very fortunate to find someone with Alan’s experience and personality to lead our planning department,” town manager Stephen Crane said in an email.Manoian has more than 30 years of experience in planning and community development.His long list of previous jobs includes assistant director of economic and downtown development in Nashua, N.H., overseeing the redevelopment of the South Weymouth Naval Air Station, and director of economic and community development in Bridgeton, Maine.<h2>Smart growth</h2>Manoian describes himself as a “new urbanist,” a “smart-growth planner,” and an “expert” in form-based code.According to Manoian, form-based code is not about how a building looks, but rather how it “lives and functions” in relation to “the human body on the street.”Asked about his planning philosophy, he points to his love of New England history and walkable neighborhoods.“It’s about reconnecting with traditional New England town and city development patterns … getting back to the fundamental roots of how our [communities] were laid out for functionality and connectivity,” he said.“Our ancestors had this planning thing down before there was anything called zoning,” he continued. “Let’s just re-embrace our traditional, customary New England ways of creating great places.”<h2>Section 3A</h2>Manoian arrives in Ipswich at a time when community development is at the forefront of a lot of peoples’ minds.On October 22, voters at special town meeting will be asked to adopt a zoning proposal that would bring Ipswich into compliance with the MBTA Communities Law, also known as Section 3A.The controversial state mandate requires communities serviced by the MBTA to create new zoning that permits multi-family housing as of right. Failure to comply could result in litigation from the state’s attorney general and the loss of certain grant funding.His second day on the job, Manoian pitched members of the 3A task force on his idea for a “3A WalkShop.”The guided walking tour, scheduled for this Saturday at 10 a.m., will take residents around the proposed 3A-complaint downtown zoning district, encouraging questions and conversation about the future of multi-family housing in Ipswich.Manoian promoted the tour in a video posted to the town’s official Facebook page earlier this week.“You’ll get a whole other dynamic and understanding of what’s being proposed, and we can get right into the living fabric of historic downtown Ipswich,” Manoian says in the video.Manoian is well-versed in 3A, having developed a plan that brought the town of Ayer, his previous employer, into interim compliance with the state mandate.Discussing Ipswich’s plan for compliance, Manoian said that the 3A task force’s proposal was “very thoughtfully done.”“It’s the right approach for Ipswich,” he said, adding that the new zoning would not substantially alter the town’s “unique character and identity.”<h2>Newsletter</h2>Would you like your week wrapped up? Sign up for our Friday newsletters for a look back and a look ahead. We won't sell (or give away) your email address.The Ipswich Local News is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. We can only operate with your assistance.Instead of making a one-time donation, please consider a recurring contribution. You can select whatever amount you wish.Please consider a monthly donation of $10.But support us at whatever level makes you comfortable. Every little helps.</div></body>

Mountain View, CA

NewsBreak

Ipswich’s new planning director discusses smart growth, walkability, and 3A

IPSWICH — He’s been Ipswich’s planning director for a couple of weeks now, but Lowell native Alan Manoian still has to pinch himself each morning as he commutes into town. “As I’m driving in, I’m like: ‘Wow. I’m really in Ipswich. How cool,'” he said....