Coupeville’s newest planner started Monday and is getting up to speed on the town’s current projects.

Owen Dennison was busy working with Mayor Molly Hughes on his first day on the job.

He left his position of almost 10 years as Planning Director for the City of Snohomish, saying he looks forward to the community atmosphere in Coupeville.

“The community is very active, very involved,” Dennison said. “In smaller communities you have a sense of ownership and involvement. You lose that as you go up in population.”

Dennison and his wife are no strangers to Coupeville, having come for many visits over the years.

He was recruited by Hughes last month after things didn’t work out with the former planner and she was let go.

Hughes said she chose Dennison because of his experience in working on comprehensive plans, which the town is currently late in starting.

“He also has experience with working an issue through a public process, staffing community board meetings and is an excellent writer,” Hughes said. “He also has experience with code/policy updates, long-term planning and the day-to-day operation of a planning department.”

“Even though he has worked with bigger cities and planning departments, he fully understands that he will be a one-man show in Coupeville and he is looking forward to helping us with all of our planning needs.”

Dennison said he’d just finished getting Snohomish through its comprehensive plan update when he heard Coupeville was looking for a new planner.

“I was working 50-60 hours a week and one day most weekends,” Dennison said. “I thought I would be a good fit.”

“So I threw my name in the hat.”

Like Coupeville, Snohomish has a federally protected historic district. It also has a design review board made up of citizens and its own set of design guidelines.

“Design guidelines are challenging because you want to provide direction, but there are so many potential circumstance,” Dennison said.

Upcoming projects Dennison will be working on include updating the comprehensive plan as well as the town’s sign guidelines. Both will involve public process.

“It’s very challenging for smaller communities with small staff,” he said. “It makes more sense to have it written by staff, to have it be more of an expression of the community.”