Planner Profile: Averi Varney

The Maine Association of Planners is proud to represent planners and others involved in planning across this great state. One of the best contributions we can make to support planning is to connect and support our professional planning community. 

Maine is a big state and the planning community is a busy bunch. The Planner Profiles series gives us a chance to meet each other and learn about our skills, interests, and experiences online.

Meet Averi Varney, Executive Director of the Hancock County Planning Commission:

HOW MANY YEARS IN PLANNING PROFESSION? 3.5 years

CURRENT JOB: Executive Director of the Hancock County Planning Commission

Tell us about your background.

I grew up in Turner, Maine, in a farming community. I received a degree in political science and economics from the University of Southern Maine, where I was active in student government and later worked as an intern and research associate for a professor who ran a small consulting firm focused on economic and statistical analysis particularly related to environmental and natural resource issues, climate change, and community development.

That work overlapped closely with planning and included contributions to comprehensive plans, sea level rise and infrastructure studies, economic impact analyses, and regional assessments. I worked alongside land use planners and began teaching myself GIS.

I joined the Hancock County Planning Commission three years ago as a regional planner and the organization’s sole staff member following a difficult transition period. I became executive director almost a year later. Since then, the organization has grown to six staff. My early years at HCPC focused on comprehensive planning and rebuilding organizational systems, informed by decades of local records and strong mentorship from planners across Maine.

What led you into planning?

My previous work was technical and data-driven but always tied to real community challenges and decisions. I was drawn to planning because it sits at the intersection of data, policy, and local needs, and because it offers the opportunity to work directly with communities on long-term issues. I have also always had a strong interest in local governance and how decisions are made.

What is unique about planning in Maine?

My experience is limited to planning in Maine but I have come to understand that Maine’s strong home-rule structure and the scale of our municipalities shape nearly everything about planning and local government here.

Many towns are small, rural, and governed largely by volunteers, with limited staff capacity and little to no county-level government involvement. We have an environment where volunteers are tasked with making complex decisions and managing intricate projects with little to no professional staff support.

What is the most rewarding aspect of your work?
Working with people who care deeply about their communities and the work they do. From municipal volunteers who give significant time and energy to local government to the growing cohort of new planners across the state.

It is also exciting to be working in Maine during a period of renewed investment in planning, with new state programs, expanded regional coordination, and major updates to growth management and resilience efforts. Being part of that shift, and helping ensure local needs are reflected in how these programs are designed and used, is incredibly meaningful.

What is the most challenging aspect of your work?

The most persistent challenge is the disconnect between community needs and available resources. We often see a mismatch where existing grant programs or technical assistance models don’t align with the ground-level realities of Maine towns. Often my work involves reframing communities’ issues to qualify under the narrow criteria of a program not necessarily designed for our Maine towns.

Tell us about your dream project.

A large-scale effort to digitize and organize local planning information, such as zoning ordinances and maps, and land use regulations, alongside broader local data-collection initiatives that towns can actually use. Many towns struggle to access reliable, up-to-date information, and much of the data available at the local level has large margins of error or is not well suited to municipal decision-making. I would love to focus on helping communities build and maintain accurate, accessible local datasets and records so they can make informed decisions.

What is your niche or main area of expertise?

Strangely enough, comprehensive plans. I had worked on comprehensive plans previously, but when I started Hancock County was in the middle of a wave of plan updates. On my first day I was responsible for eight plans. It was a true trial by fire, but with the support of a seasoned board chair and a private contractor, planners from other regional councils, and a few others, I learned the process inside and out, for all its goods and bads. I’ve now been directly involved in roughly 16 comprehensive plans over the last four years.