The area surrounding the proposed I-93 Tri-Town Interchange represents one of the largest concentrations of employment in northeastern Massachusetts. Poor access to the regional highway system is a key constraint on expanding existing businesses and hundreds of acres of industrial land are underutilized because they are landlocked or lack highway access. For example, Wyeth BioPharma has been unable to expand its facilities in Andover due to highway access issues. Businesses in the project area currently employ 6,300 people but could support between 4,489 and 11,575 new jobs.

Recognizing the potential benefits a new interchange would bring to the region, the communities of Andover, Tewksbury and Wilmington formed the Tri-Town Development Task Force in 2006. Through a public consensus-building process the communities identified Priority Development Sites, which were accepted by the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development for expedited permitting and future funding opportunities. The communities were awarded a joint Chapter 43D Technical Assistance Grant totaling $300,000 to begin preparing the regional development plan. The grant will be used to develop a unified, transparent and efficient process for municipal permitting on each community's priority development site. The Task Force will create a form-based code that supports economic growth in areas citizens prefer. Form-based code is a way to control the physical form, not necessarily land use, of an area to achieve a specific vision through regulations.

The towns have "committed to reaching an agreement on a mutually supported master plan that would respect each community's 'priorities' as outlined in the vision." The master planning process signals to businesses that the communities are serious about economic growth and it will encourage private investment in the area. The community process began in October 2008 with the award of the 43D grant and will be completed in January 2010. The form-based code master plan will be voted on at spring 2010 town meetings in each community.

You can find more information on the Tri-Town Development Task Force initiative on Andover's I-93 planning webpage and on the Tri-Town Form-Based Code project website.