Vision 2020 announced this week it will hold a public forum next month to spur discussion on ways to get better, affordable rental housing in Austin. This dovetails nicely with the Austin City Council’s debate to enact a rental housing ordinance, which the council has pondered over the past few years. At least one member of the city council, Jeff Austin, was hesitant to enlist Vision 2020’s help. We wonder, though, how gathering more information on the subject — especially if the council is split on what to do — could possibly be a bad thing?

Vision 2020 will hold the forum 10 a.m. Saturday, March 8 at the Austin Public Library.

Council members have brought up a rental ordinance as a way to improve city housing over the past year, but the council tabled rental ordinance discussions last month after another round of debate over the city’s current policies.

The council came close to enacting a landlord registration policy in 2011 after months of work, but ultimately voted the idea down despite support from the local landlord association.

Cue a plea for help by Council Member Judy Enright to seek outside input. Vision 2020 got the ball rolling by planning for the upcoming forum.

Though Jeff Austin sees the forum as unnecessary, we disagree. Like most things in government, it is far better to get input and hold open discussions on a topic. The council serves the community better when it has more information from its constituents, regardless of the issue or how the council votes.

Given the interest in a rental ordinance and the council’s back-and-forth on the issue, we support Vision 2020’s decision and we applaud Enright for seeking outside input. Gathering more information on a topic is never unnecessary. Even if the council decides against another ordinance, we are glad the community will have an opportunity to express their views on solutions for better rental housing, which is vital at this point if the city expects to keep young professionals in the area.