SUGAR LAND, Texas -- A local community wants to crack down on how close sex offenders can live to the places where children learn and play, KPRC Local 2 reported Tuesday.

Sugar Land is considered one of the best places to live in the state. It could soon have one of the toughest laws on the books restricting where registered sex offenders can live.

Currently, registered sex offenders in Sugar Land cannot live within 1,000 feet of where children gather, which is state law. But a proposed ordinance would more than double that.

Sugar Land Mayor David Wallace wants to increase the distance between registered sex offenders and public places such as day-care centers, schools, parks and public pools to 2,500 feet.

"We are going to continue to put this at the forefront of everyone's mind to make sure that we keep the youth in our community and everyone in our community safe," Wallace said.

It's an idea many parents support.

"I think that's its important to keep sex offenders as far away from anything that would tempt them as possible. Obviously, we want to keep the children as safe as possible," parent Pete Conrad said.

"Anytime we can put more space between sex offenders and places that children are, that's a good thing, and we should absolutely be behind that," parent Lou Braun said.

The new ordinance would not, however, apply to sex offenders already living in Sugar Land.

That's troubling to Jeff Hammad.

"I got four kids, so that's something we think about every day," he said.

He lives two doors down from one of Sugar Land's 12 registered sex offenders.

"Most of us believe that where's there's smoke, there's fire, and the people that get caught once -- God knows how many times they've done something in the past," Hammad said.

The Sugar Land City Council has already given preliminary approval to the new ordinance. A second vote takes place on July 17. It if passes, the ordinance would go into effect immediately.

The proposed ordinance also prohibits Sugar Land property owners from renting to registered sex offenders identified through a criminal background check. Property owners and sex offenders could face a $500 fine.

More Information:

Search: Texas Department Of Public Safety Sex Offender Database