TWIN LAKES — The list of Kenosha County municipalities with restrictions on where sex offenders can live could grow longer if Twin Lakes officials pass a new ordinance proposed by Police Chief Dale Racer.

Racer said he has researched more than a dozen ordinances in place throughout the state and feels, based on increased placements, the village oneeds an ordinance to prohibit sex offenders from living in close proximity to where children gather. He said the number of sex offenders in the village has grown from four to 12 in the last three years.

Administrator David Cox said the ordinances being looked at all restrict sex offenders from living within a specific distance from schools, parks and other areas where children congregate. They range from 2,000 feet to 6,000 feet from these places.

“The 2,000 foot range (in the initial draft ordinance in Twin Lakes) would make 90 percent of Twin Lakes out of bounds,” said administrator David Cox. “While there are people out there would say, ‘Make it 100 percent,’ I don’t know we would get away with that in the courts if it were challenged.”

Cox said he, Racer and the village attorney are working on a proposal that provides “balance.”

“We don’t want to become dumping ground,” said Cox. “We want to provide a safe community. But, at the same time we recognize they have to live somewhere. As much as we would like to close the door, so to speak, we have to provide a balance in what we do.”

Sex offender residency ordinances have been passed in:

Representatives from the Department of Corrections attended hearings in several municipalities on the proposed ordinances, claiming the rules could have the opposite effect than what was intended, drive offenders underground and create safety problems in communities.

Ruth Donalds, a supervisor with the state Department of Corrections, and Jennifer Arndt, a sex offender registration specialist with the department, suggested at the Silver Lake hearing that ordinances such as this undermine the registry, the supervision process and ultimately public safety.

Arndt said research shows ordinances such as this cause some sex offenders to become homeless, after which they fail to remain in compliance.

The Kenosha County Board of Supervisors agreed.

The board voted 25-1 in May 2009 to support state legislation that would ban local sex offender placement ordinances. However, Silver Lake and Salem officials said they still felt compelled to adopt ordinances similar to ones in neighboring communities. The Salem effort was backed by a petition from residents.

Cox said the state legislation is not yet approved. In the meantime, an ordinance in Franklin with a 2,500 foot safety zone was upheld in court and Paddock Lake’s ordinance resulted in a newly placed sex offender being relocated. Under the Paddock Lake regulation, owners whose properties are within 2,500 feet from a park, school or other place where children gather and who rent to a sex offender can be fined up to $500 per day.