Trick-or-treating date and times approved for the city of Lake Geneva (copy)

Scheduling trick-or-treating in the city of Lake Geneva has not been as scary this year as it has been in the past.

Members of the Lake Geneva City Council approved, Sept. 23, to conduct trick-or-treating Sunday, Oct. 27, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., this year.

The city's trick-or-treating date and times were approved by a 7-1 vote with Alderwoman Linda Frame voting "no."

Members of the City Council's Finance, Licensing and Regulation Committee unanimously recommended the trick-or-treating schedule, Sept. 17, with Alderwoman Sherri Ames proposing the date and times.

Scheduling Lake Geneva's trick-or-treating date and times has been a topic of debate among city officials for several years.

Some aldermen have felt that trick-or-treating should be conducted the Sunday before Halloween, while other aldermen have felt that it should be held on Halloween.

Trick-or-treating in Lake Geneva has usually been held on the Sunday before Halloween.

However, trick-or-treating was held on Halloween in 2017, when it fell on a weekday, but it was then reverted back to the Sunday before Halloween in 2018.

Last year, trick-or-treating was initially approved to be held on Halloween and then approved to be held the Sunday before Halloween a few weeks later.

Scheduling trick-or-treating caused some debate among city aldermen this year, but there was not as much discussion as there has been during previous years.

Ames said she prefers trick-or-treating to be held the Sunday before Halloween, because children have after-school activities and parents have to work during the weekdays, so conducting it the Sunday before Halloween is more convenient for residents.

"I would love to do trick-or-treating on Halloween, but our kids don't get home until 4 o'clock. A lot of parents are still working. Their children are still in daycare," Ames said. "I would love to have it on Halloween, but we're in a different time. We're in a different age."

Alderwoman Shari Straube said she would prefer that trick-or-treating be conducted on Halloween, because that is the traditional day it is held. She said when trick-or-treating was conducted on a Tuesday several years ago there were no reported issues.

"I understand it can be difficult for certain populations to do certain things after school because they have sports and other activities," Straube said. "But parents pull kids from activities all the time for other reasons. We celebrate every other holiday on the holiday. I would like to see it on Halloween."

Frame said she is not in favor of the 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. times, because it may be too late for some children to go trick-or-treating. She said she was more in favor of last year's trick-or-treating times when it was held from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

"It's going to be dark at 6 o'clock with the little toddlers running around out there, and it's unnecessary," Frame said. "So why are we moving it to 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. when we had it from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. last year, and everyone was happy as pie?"

Ames said she proposed the 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. schedule to give younger children an opportunity to go trick-or-treating in the middle of the afternoon and older children an opportunity to go towards the evening.

She also said the downtown area is less busy around 3 p.m., and the Green Bay Packers game is at noon on Oct. 27.

"It gives the residents who want to go during the daylight, daylight times. The parents and families who want to do it a little bit later, can do it when it gets a little darker," Ames said. "So we're taking care of two things."

Alderman Ken Howell feels from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. is an ideal time to schedule trick-or-treating on a Sunday.

"I think we had an eureka moment when she came up with 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.," Howell said. "I thought it was brilliant. Let's hope it works, because it seems like a good time for everybody."

Mayor Todd Krause said he would like to develop a permanent schedule for trick-or-treating, so the issue does not have to be debated every year.

"It would be nice if we could consider making this a permanent day and time, so we don't have to deal with this every year," Krause said.

Interim City Administrator David De Angelis said the issue with scheduling trick-or-treating on the Sunday before Halloween permanently is residents may want to go trick-or-treating on Halloween during the years when it occurs on a Friday or Saturday.

He said several communities conduct trick-or-treating the Sunday before Halloween, then on Friday and Saturday during the years when the holiday falls on those days.

"So you don't have to worry about the calendar per year," De Angelis said. "You know that if Halloween falls on a Friday, you're going to have it on a Friday. If it falls on a Saturday, you're going to have it on a Saturday. If it doesn't, it's always going to be the last Sunday of October."

City Attorney Dan Draper advised the aldermen that they would have to approve an ordinance in order to set a permanent trick-or-treating schedule.

Krause said he would like to vote on an ordinance to set a permanent trick-or-treating schedule during an upcoming meeting.

"We're good for this Halloween. Let's revisit the ordinance. Let's revisit the permanent dates and times," Krause said. "Thank the Lord we got that one done."

Members of the Lake Geneva Jaycees are scheduled to conduct a trunk-or-treat event Sunday, Oct. 27, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., at the Lake City Social parking lot, 111 Center St.