Matt Noonkester, AICP | President & Founding Principal

M​att Noonkester has 24 years of progressive planning experience managing projects that help local, regional and state government officials tackle difficult public policy planning issues. He has extensive experience using geographic information system (GIS) software to measure the built environment and leading community groups through a comprehensive planning process.  Mr. Noonkester is a certified CommunityViz, Gold Level Consultant and Classroom Instructor, and routinely speaks at professional conferences, expert panel sessions, and technical user group meetings on the topic of scenario planning and CommunityViz software.  He has also partnered with staff and elected officials throughout the United States to prepare regional growth studies, comprehensive plans, small area plans, corridor studies, capital improvements plans, land development regulations, urban design guidelines, development impact fee ordinances, and other special studies consistent with state law and community context.

Before forming City Explained, Inc. in 2015, Mr. Noonkester owned another successful planning firm, led a community planning team at two large planning and engineering firms, and served in the public sector, holding the position of Zoning Compliance Planner for the City of Bloomington, Indiana.

Ian Varley | Planning Manager

Reilly Thimons | Municipal Services Director

Ian Varley develops technical mapping solutions for the built environment using CommunityViz and ArcGIS software. He is skilled at creating visual planning tools for communicating knowledge and solving problems in urban and regional planning.  Mr. Varley has 16 years of experience creating, maintaining and manipulating geospatial data, and his planning experience extends to transportation planning, conservation planning, green infrastructure and climate change.  He offers a wealth of experience developing and applying GIS technology to problem solving, as well as training and communicating difficult technical topics to a wide array of stakeholders.

Mr. Varley holds a Masters of Environmental Management from Duke University and Bachelor of Arts in Geography and Spanish with an Emphasis in Rural, Town and Regional Planning from the University of Montana, Missoula.  In graduate school he focused on the techniques of land conservation finance as well as real estate and land use law. He speaks fluent Spanish, having lived and worked in natural resource conservation and protected area management in El Salvador, Central America for five years.