Plans to make Langley’s Second Street Dance one of the city’s premier events were set in motion Thursday morning at a Langley Arts Commission meeting.

The dance, adopted by the commission, will be a regular tradition the weekend following the Fourth of July. It will also include a studious planning process by the event’s organizers.

Callahan McVay, chair of the recently formed Second Street Dance subcommittee, said the prelude to the event will include call-to-artist competitions for promotional posters and two bands, coordination with local eateries and drinking establishments. This year’s event drew somewhere between 400 to 500 people.

It’s never too early to start planning, McVay said. The arts commission meets once a month for an hour, leaving only 10 more meetings to prepare after Thursday’s session.

“We only have 11 months until the Street Dance actually happens,” McVay said. “I thought we’d do the call [to artists] sooner than later and get the word circulating before people feel left out and don’t get a chance to apply.”

The subcommittee will consist of three members and will make recommendations to the commission, which will then take those recommendations to the city council for approval. The other two members of the subcommittee have not yet been selected, said McVay, though he believes Commission Chairman Frank Rose and member Stacie Burgua will be strong candidates.

With the addition of the street dance, McVay felt the arts commission is more balanced in its contributions to the city.

“This will help round out our platform of three-dimensional works on pedestals, and performing arts,” McVay said.

Though the event has been running more than 40 years, it did so under the umbrella of the Choochokam Music and Arts Festival. The festival has since moved out of downtown Langley to Community Park on Maxwelton Road, leaving Langley without one of its most beloved traditions. That is, until now.

“[Choochokam] can do the arts fair and they can do the rest of it, but Langley will own its street dance,” McVay said.

With the addition of the Street Dance, the commission’s contributions to the city art-wise is more well-rounded, with a strong balance between sculptures and performing arts.

Providing food and spirits will also be made easier with Langley businesses staying open during the dance. McVay said places like Double Bluff Brewery, Village Pizzeria and the South Whidbey Commons thrived during this year’s event.

“We kind of have it all in-house,” McVay said. “We don’t have to bring a bunch of crappy tents and vendors in for that one occasion. We have it already here in downtown.”

McVay said they hope to select artists and bands by May or, at the latest, June, so posters can be made. He said the poster could also spin off into t-shirts for distribution by the Langley Chamber of Commerce and South Whidbey Commons. Locals will be given preference during the selection process.

Among the considerations moving forward will be determining exactly what constitutes “local,” McVay said.

Jeannie Miller, an arts commission member, said she liked the idea of the call-to-artists for both the music and the poster, which she felt expanded the scope of the project in a positive way. She also asked what the response was like from attendees in the decision to move the dance from its traditional location in front of the Dog House to the plaza. McVay said feedback was positive, and because many of the amenities that were previously relevant in the location are no longer there, such as a Mexican restaurant and ice cream shop. The plaza also does not require the entire street to be shut down.

“It’s a great use for the space,” McVay said. “It’s kind of what it was built for — public usage. The corner by the Dog House had its day.”

Rose said another positive in the location change is less hassle during setup.

“We had to set up a stage in front of the Dog House, one that I built myself many years ago, and it was a very complex thing,” Rose said.

A stage isn’t necessary in the current location due to the plaza being slightly elevated in front of Callahan’s Firehouse Studio.