There are a few curves in the road from here to there.

But Langley council members will tackle the twists and turns of the city’s new subdivision regulations over the coming months, before any developers come around the bend with new projects that can be built under Langley’s current development rules.

With the council set to lift the city’s 34-month-long moratorium on new subdivisions this week, council members met for nearly two hours Monday to talk about the unfinished work that prompted the lengthy ban on subdividing property.

At the center of the uncompleted chores is the adoption of new zoning for the Village by the Sea, and a comprehensive set of regulations that will guide development.

The new rules have been the source of continual controversy — mostly from developers who think they will make building in Langley more costly and complex, but from property owners, too, worried about the financial impacts of requirements that would leave much of their land as untouched open space if they want to create new lots.

City Councilman Robert Gilman acknowledged that the new rules have created much interest — and concern.

“We have places where people don’t see eye to eye, and that’s par for the course,” Gilman said.

Gilman set out suggestions for the council’s goals as it reviews and finally adopts the set of changes recommended by the city’s Planning Advisory Board last month.

He touched on areas of the new regulations where it seemed that everyone agreed: protecting open space, clustering development, restrictions on design and consideration for watersheds near the city’s bluffs.

In a flip-chart presentation, Gilman also pointed to public perceptions of the new rules, including the lack of review by outside experts, specific development standards that had drawn fire, such as how new neighborhood roads should be constructed, and Langley’s reputation for being a difficult place to get a project built.

Several council members said they were also concerned about the draft set of regulations, especially rules that would require some property owners to set aside most of their land as undeveloped open space if they want to develop. An earlier version of the new regulations had suggested that some landowners would need to set aside between

45 to 70 percent of their land for open space if they wanted to create new building lots.

The percentage of required open space was a key issue, said Councilman Jim Recupero.

“That’s the biggie,” Recupero said. “I would not like to own 10 acres and only be able to develop three.”

Councilwoman Rene Neff agreed, and said new subdivisions alone should not bear the burden of getting more open space in Langley.

Other options for acquisitions, such as those set out in the city’s new parks plan, should be looked at, she said. Geography, topography and the city’s priorities must also be considered.

Gilman said such concerns could be worked out in a series of focused meetings.

“If we had no areas of concern, it would be passed already,” he said of the new rules.

Gilman added that future meetings should focus on policy issues and decisions, and pledged an open and transparent process as the council reviews the draft regulations. He said background briefing papers and other relevant documents could be put on the city’s Web site.

“Leaks” about the progress being made on the draft rules would be encouraged, Gilman said.

“We’re going to invite that leakiness. We’re going to do this in a completely open, transparent way,” he said.