Mayoral candidates set to discuss housing issues at Oct. 11 forum

Issues related to affordable housing will take center stage in a mayoral forum co-organized by the Wichita Journalism Collaborative and Wichita Habitat for Humanity.

The Wichita Public Library will host the forum at 5:45 p.m. on Oct. 11 at the Advanced Learning Library, 711 W. Second St.

Community members are invited to join in person for the forum. KSN-TV will livestream the event for those unable to attend in person. Mayor Brandon Whipple and challenger Lily Wu will participate.

Why conduct a forum specifically about housing?

Habitat for Humanity’s advocacy committee thought it would be a way to connect with the mayoral candidates, while involving those affected by the policies the mayor will enact. It partnered with the collaborative as a way to involve more community members.

Danielle Johnson of Habitat for Humanity says she hopes this forum will help the community get more engaged in affordable housing.

“We definitely want our homeowners … and potential homeowners or incoming homeowners to understand the importance of being civically engaged, and listening to what is happening in the housing landscape.” Johnson said. “It won’t just be our homeowners, that’s why we wanted to partner with the collaborative, but get other community members engaged in the larger conversation on what is affordable housing.”

Johnson hopes the forum’s specific topic will allow for meaningful conversation between the community and the candidates.

“We’re hoping to hear our mayoral candidates have strong stances on what they would like to do, what they would like to see done,” Johnson said.

If you have a question that you would like to see the candidates answer, you submit it at http://www.wichitajournalism.org/housing-forum

The Wichita Journalism Collaborative is a coalition of newsrooms and community partners, including The Eagle, joining forces to help meet news and information needs in and around Wichita. The collaborative is funded by a grant from the News and Information Fund at the Wichita Foundation.

The shared interest in affordable housing inspired the collaborative to partner with Habitat for Humanity in hosting this event. The collaborative is focused on housing issues in Wichita because of the many barriers to home ownership Wichitans are currently facing.