Amarillo city leaders are considering new restrictions on where certain registered sex offenders can live, with a proposed ordinance creating 1,000-foot child safety zones around schools, parks and other places where children commonly gather.

Amarillo Police Chief Thomas Hover presented the proposal to the Amarillo City Council on Tuesday, telling council members the city does not currently have a sex offender residency ordinance.

Under the proposal, certain registered sex offenders would be prohibited from establishing a permanent residence within 1,000 feet of parks, libraries, public and private elementary and secondary schools, youth centers and day care facilities. The distance would be measured from property line to property line.

“The whole purpose of what we’re trying to do is protect the vulnerable from harm,” Hover said. “In this particular case, the most vulnerable harm are children.”

Hover said the restrictions are intended to limit opportunities for contact between certain registered sex offenders and children while giving police clear standards for enforcement.

Map shows potential impact across Amarillo

During the presentation, Hover showed council members a preliminary map of what the proposed 1,000-foot safety zones could look like across Amarillo.

The map showed significant portions of the city falling within the proposed restricted areas. It also identified apartments, duplexes, triplexes and quadplexes outside the buffers to illustrate housing that could remain available.

Hover cautioned that the map was preliminary. More detailed GIS work would be needed to determine exact property lines and boundaries if the ordinance moves forward.

The restrictions would apply moving forward rather than retroactively. Someone already legally living at a residence would not be forced to move if a new protected location later opened within 1,000 feet of that home.

The proposed ordinance would apply to permanent residences rather than temporary residences, and registered minors would not be included.

Churches also would not be designated as protected locations under the proposal.

Hover told the council his research found at least 25 Texas cities with similar ordinances. Most of the cities he reviewed use a 1,000-foot buffer.

A violation of Amarillo's proposed ordinance would be a Class C misdemeanor.

APD reports seven arrests during compliance operation

The residency proposal comes as the Amarillo Police Department continues its enforcement of existing sex offender registration requirements.

Hover provided council members with results from APD's recent three-day sex offender compliance operation. Officers visited 631 homes and made 335 field contacts during the effort.

Seven arrests were made, and nine investigations were opened.

Hover said APD conducts the operations annually to check whether registered sex offenders are complying with registration requirements. One problem officers encounter involves individuals registering at one address but later being found living somewhere else.

The proposed residency ordinance would give the department another enforcement tool by establishing specific areas where certain registered offenders could not establish permanent residences.

Council members expressed support during Tuesday's discussion for continuing work on the proposal.

Hover said legal work on the ordinance is already underway. Once that work is complete, the proposal could return to the City Council for formal consideration.

City officials said the ordinance would require two readings before it could be adopted.