08-11-2021 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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Little Canada city staff have received some inquiries over the past two years about our predatory offender restrictions. Current staff is concerned with how broad Chapter 2204 is and that it could leave the city open to a lawsuit. When Council was considering this ordinance, it was decided that the chosen parameters would be put in place and then see how it goes. Now five years later, due to a recent inquiry and the result of West St. Paul’s lawsuit, staff is recommending that the Council review Chapter 2204 and consider amendments. Staff has discussed this with the City Attorney, who is also concerned that Little Canada’s City Code is too broad and recommends that City Code Chapter 2204 be amended. He suggests following West St. Paul’s amended version of their predatory offender ordinance since it had been developed from a court settlement. Concerns about City Code Chapter 2204: • The broad scope of City Code 2204, particularly the definition of predatory offender and the limited residential area not in an exclusion zone, leaves the City vulnerable to a lawsuit • Including a 500-foot radius around bus stops excludes the majority of residential areas • The map of bus stops changes at least annually, possibly more often as students move and bus stops change to accommodate new student addresses • Every person who is required to register as a predatory offender is governed by this ordinance - this is a very wide scope of people • Section 2204.030f: Should the city be restricting who the offender can work for? Should city staff be monitoring where local offenders are working or volunteering in Little Canada? Potential amendments to consider: • Narrow the scope of who is considered an offender: o Limit to Level 3 only o Limit to Level 2 and 3 only o Have a list of “designated offenses” like several other cities have (list of MN State Statutes for each type of offense – see West St. Paul’s ordinance) • Remove the bus stop exclusion zones - unless the scope of defined offenders is narrowed • Remove Sec. 2204.030f STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Consider amendments to City Code Chapter 2204, Exclusion Zones & Prohibition of Certain Employment-Related Activities. If Council chooses to make amendments to the City Code, staff will draft an Ordinance for Council action at an upcoming meeting. Attachments: 1. Chart showing other east metro city predatory offender restrictions & list of cities with no restrictions 2. Article about West St. Paul lawsuit 3. Little Canada City Code Chapter 2204 4. Adopted March 2016 map showing the Exclusion Zones • The green on the map is the area left after the 500-foot radius around schools, church or place of worship, public park, city easement, public wooded or open space, any public trails and fishing piers – including these locations that are in adjacent cities and a 500-foot radius spills into Little Canada • The circles on the map are the 500-foot radius around bus stops (as of March 2016). The map has not been updated since the initial adoption of the ordinance. 5. West St. Paul’s amended predatory offender ordinance