LANGLEY — Hang the sour economy. The city is pushing ahead in the pursuit of economic ideas to ensure a rosy future for years to come.

Bouncing back from the recession was a topic that took center stage last week at the Langley City Council meeting.

“We’re not sitting around doing wishful thinking,” Councilman Russell Sparkman told his fellow council members. “We’re out in the community.”

“Quite a few merchants are doing quite well, despite the gloom and doom,” added Lynn Willeford, owner of The Clyde Theatre on First Street downtown. “In general, these are businesses that do significant market outreach.”

Willeford is part of an official task force, the Mayor’s Council for Economic Health, directed to come up with ways to recharge the city.

Sparkman is spearheading the group on behalf of the city council. Willeford is participating, along with Linda Irvine, coordinator of the city’s Neighbor-to-Neighbor program, and Langley-area resident and demographic expert Grant Anderson.

Formed about a year and a half ago in conjunction with an update of the city’s comprehensive plan, the group made its first public report to city officials.

“It’s an ongoing project,” Sparkman said. “The city’s never concentrated on economic development before.”

The report focuses on ways to get people and businesses in, and an irresistible message out; to accentuate the positive and eliminate the negative.

Willeford and Irvine contacted more than 20 merchants.

“All we had to do was ask them,” Willeford said, adding that many talked for the better part of an hour. “They were dying to be asked.”

Basically, the report concentrates on increasing economic diversity, building on the perception of the city as a year-round center for a variety of activities and events, and re-enforcing Langley’s identity as the cultural center of South Whidbey.

Other priorities are support for retail businesses and services, maintaining the city’s physical beauty and small-town feel and communicating the city’s image effectively.

The report also urges emphasizing the marina and waterfront to stimulate economic growth, attracting and retaining young families to the area, capitalizing on Langley’s image as a creative and progressive town, and encouraging partnerships with the Langley Chamber of Commerce, the Port of South Whidbey, educational institutions and other organizations.

First and foremost, the city should emphasize its best qualities, Sparkman said.

“We should recognize that arts, culture and education programs work for Langley,” he said. “They’re things we already have, so it make sense.”

The city’s marina, scenic views, whales and “walkability” are also a plus, he said.

Sparkman said one of his priorities would be to attract nomadic hi-tech types such as himself, people who are financially stable, work from home and looking for “great, funky little communities like Langley.”

Demographer Anderson said census data shows a “young-adult gap” in Langley.

In 2007, there were 1,027 residents. The number of people in the city between the ages of 20 and 45 was less than 20 percent.

The gap tightened in the 35 to 54 age group, “a pretty decent chunk of people in the prime of their work and family lives,” Sparkman said.

And the number of residents 55 and older is steadily increasing, data shows.

“Older people are choosing to come here because of the walkability and liveliness,” Willeford said. “And many of them can outspend younger people.”

Anderson noted that in the 1970s there was a huge influx of young people who moved to Langley and other parts of South Whidbey, many of them now in their golden years and still here.

“Of course, rents were low then,” he added. “But there is some indication that people who left are coming back.”

“They obviously would come back if they could afford it,” said City Councilman Jim Recupero.

Willeford’s survey of merchants indicated they “like the image of Langley as a great place to walk around and be amused and relaxed, a fun and artsy small town with a friendly vibe and gorgeous location.”

She said most shops “need to think beyond the village” by using expanded e-mail lists, wholesale operations and an online presence to entice regional and off-island customers.

Merchants also urged more partnering to contact tour companies and trip and convention planners to offer general or “niche” excursions to the community.

Still, there is concern that rents are too high for start-ups. Merchants suggested the city might defray some fees and offer initial lower rents to help new businesses get established.

Merchants also would like to see a variety of new businesses in town, including more restaurants and shops selling sporting goods, clothing, shoes, toys and candy.

Willeford’s report said the city’s biggest asset may be the merchants themselves — their stories, their friendliness and their willingness to help everyone who comes by.

“That’s true,” Sparkman said. “That’s authentic. That’s golden.”

Longtime Langley businesswoman Cynthia Tilkin agreed.

Tilkin, owner of a clothing store and design business on First Street, said that when she first visited Langley in her thirties in 1974, “somebody actually said hello,” and that sealed the deal.

“If we all just say hello to someone, or even just nod our heads, it can make a big difference,” she said.

Sparkman said the group would continue to work on a more detailed plan of action.

“We don’t want to be one-dimensional,” Mayor Paul Samuelson said. “I’m excited that the city has taken on economic development.”

“One of the nice things about a town of only a thousand people is that it’s workable,” City Councilman Robert Gilman added.

The report “Top 10 Priorities for Economic Health” is available on the city’s Web site, www.langleywa.org.