Will new Joliet park force sex offenders out of neighborhood?

The city attorney said a new Joliet park even without a playground should force child sex offenders out of a nearby apartment house, although other sex offenders still could live there.

The City Council on Tuesday voted 9-0 to build the Cunningham Neighborhood Park, conceived as a means to move sex offenders out of a nearby apartment house.

Interim City Attorney Todd Lenzie read from a state law barring child sex offenders from living within 500 feet of a public playground when council members asked whether the park will have the desired effect.

Lenzie said the legal definition of a public playground is “pretty broad – for children’s recreation. I think [the new park] will meet that definition.”

The park is designed to contain plantings, benches and a sign that says “Cunningham Neighborhood Park.”

The city acquired the property at 1000 N. Center St. in 2022 as residents fumed over the acquisition of an apartment building in their neighborhood by Lake Zurich-based NewDay Apartments, an organization devoted to finding residences for sex offenders restricted by state law that limits where they can live.

Council member Larry Hug cautioned that residents should not think the park will necessarily shut down the apartment house on Cora Avenue.

“It will prohibit any child sex offenders from living near that park,” Hug said. “It will not prevent all sex offenders.”

Lenzie agreed, saying the law upon which the city relies applies specifically to child sex offenders.

The city spent $124,000 to acquire the property, which had been occupied by a vacant, burnt-out house. About $100,000 will be spent to develop the park.

Community Development Director Dustin Anderson said the city will look into reducing the price tag for park development by possibly doing some of the work in-house instead of hiring contractors.