Norwich — State and local officials are calling for the state to stop placing released sex offenders at an apartment house at 152 Broad St. and will meet Nov. 12 with local parole and probation officials to review placement and monitoring of offenders in city neighborhoods.

Mayor Deberey Hinchey and the city’s state legislative delegation issued a joint press release Tuesday announcing the meeting and calling on the state Department of Correction to stop the additional placement of sex offenders in the Norwich facility operated by Connections Inc. Connections also runs the January Center, a sex offender treatment facility at the Corrigan-Radgowski Correctional Center in Montville.

Neighbors brought the issue to the attention of city officials in early September after learning that four sex offenders either on probation or parole had been placed in the two-family house with state subsidized rents through the REACH — Reentry Assisted Community Housing — program.

According to the state Sex Offender Registry, those original four offenders have relocated — two to an apartment house at 77 Union St., one to Uncasville and one to Bridgeport. But two other registered sex offenders, Carlos Cruz and Christopher DePallo, now live at 152 Broad St.

“This facility is simply too close to our schools and parks, and does not belong in the heart of a residential neighborhood where families, children and single women live,” Hinchey said in the press release. “We have made great progress in this neighborhood, and this facility is a step in the wrong direction.”

The registry lists several sex offenders living on lower Union Street at 18, 47, 70 and 77 Union St.

At the Nov. 12, meeting, the state legislators will work with parole and probation officials to start creating a plan of how the offenders are being monitored by different entities and what protocol must be followed when placing sex offenders in neighborhoods.

“What is most troubling to me is that local and city official were not properly notified by the state,” state Sen. Cathy Osten, D-Sprague, said. “There is a complete lack of transparency here, and we are going to fix that. We will ensure this does not happen again.”

State Rep. Emmett Riley, D-Sprague, said the local legislation pledged to introduce legislation next year to create restrictions on where facilities for sex offenders can be located. All four are up for re-election Nov. 4 and face Republican challengers.

“No one wants a sex offender facility in their neighborhood, and as a new father, I will be aggressive pursuing legislation to bar facilities like this from our neighborhoods,” Riley said.

“We truly need a change in protocol here that not only informs us of offenders who are placed in a community, but also housing that is created in our communities,” state Rep. Kevin Ryan, D-Montville, said in the press release.

State Rep. Brian Sear, D-Canterbury, said he supported legislation last year that required state officials to notified chief elected officials in a municipality when sex offenders were placed in a municipality.

“It is now clear that we need to address specific community locations as well,” Sear said in the press release.

Three of the four Republicans challenging the incumbent Democrats said Tuesday that they support efforts to improve tracking and restrict placements of sex offenders in certain locations.

Steven Everett, Osten’s Republican opponent, said the safety of residents and families should be the top priority.

Robert Dempsky, who is challenging Riley in the 46th District, said a meeting with state parole and probation officials is “exactly” what is needed.

“The people directly responsible for these decisions need to be accessible to the public and accountable,” Dempsky said.

“The efforts of the Department of Corrections should have been better coordinated with municipalities,” Everett said. “Clearly, this issue has not been studied sufficiently. However, this is not a new issue and is one that should have been addressed years ago. I will look forward to attending the meeting with parole and probation officials in November.”

Doug Dubitsky, Republican candidate in Sear’s 47th District, said it’s not just an issue for cities. He said in Scotland, three sex offenders were placed in a house near a family with small children. Dubitsky said he supported the bill that passed last session to notify chief elected officials when sex offenders move into a town, but said it should go further.

“I do think it was an important issue and community does need to be aware of these facilities,” Dubitsky said. “It’s not just a situation where one sex offender decides to move into a town. These are facilities operated by corporations with assistance from state Department of Corrections.”

Ryan’s opponent in the 139th House district, Republican Jonathan Gilman, could not be reached for comment.

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