By Kevin Boneske
Staff Writer
HOWARD – Convicted sex offenders will not be allowed to loiter within 50 feet of areas designated in the village as Child Safety Zones under an ordinance amendment approved Monday, Oct. 22, by the Howard village board.
The village board adopted a Child Protection Ordinance in 2008 to prohibit sex offenders from residing within 2,500 feet of any school, licensed day care center, park, trail, playground, place of worship or any other place designated by the village as a place where children are known to congregate.
Village Administrator Paul Evert said Direct Enforcement Officer Jim Dagneau requested that the village code also prohibit sex offenders from loitering around those areas.
“Officer Dagneau brought to our attention that, unlike the village of Suamico and some other municipalities, we don’t have actually a loitering component to our sex offender residency ordinance,” Evert said. “If you all look at Suamico’s, they have everything we have, plus they have this additional 50-foot loitering (provision). I think the concern was having sex offenders loitering around parks. (That) was the primary driver of Officer Dagneau (making the ordinance amendment request).”
The ordinance amendment takes effect following publication in The Press Times.