A discussion on affordable housing in Langley will continue at an upcoming online meeting scheduled for 6:30 p.m. this Tuesday, Sept. 14.

Last May, the city’s Affordable Housing Working Group — a subcommittee of the Planning Advisory Board — held the first meeting on the hot topic.

The focus of that previous meeting was on understanding the range of needs for affordable housing and prioritizing categories of need consistent with the Langley Comprehensive Plan goals and policies. Langley business owners testified about the difficulty their employees were having in securing a place to live.

The meeting next week will move beyond the issue and explore housing solutions. A series of guest speakers will be joining the webinar to share their experiences, including Brigid Reynolds, Langley’s former director of community planning. She will be joined by Melora Hiller, a community development consultant, and Michael Hassig, the former mayor of Carbondale, Colo.

Langley Mayor Scott Chaplin formerly served as a town trustee in Carbondale and was able to witness the town’s transition from a place where people with lower incomes were getting pushed out of the community because of high housing costs. The town instituted a community housing program to help with this divide.

He’s hopeful that Langley may be able to pursue affordable housing in a similar manner, although the city’s small size could be a challenge.

The forthcoming city meeting could be of interest to prospective landlords, real estate professionals, developers, elected government officials, housing officials and others who work in the field, he said.

Interested participants should register for the Zoom webinar in advance online at tinyurl.com/AffordableHousingSolution.

For additional information, contact planning@langleywa.org.