"It's time for us to do some real heavy hitting on this. It's gone on too long," said Councilman Joe Pirzynski.

In the meantime, Los Gatos Bar & Grill has until about mid-December to put up some sort of sound shield to buffer the noise coming from its common deck area. Though the presence of a shielding device had been noted as part of the bar's conditional use permit that was approved earlier this year, the owner wanted to delay putting up a shield because he felt the noise problem was not stemming from that area.

"To me, it doesn't seem necessary to put up the shield until we have reason to put up the shield," owner Jason Farwell said at the Oct. 20 council meeting.

Though complaints of noise from the deck have decreased, Los Gatos­Monte Sereno police Capt. Alana Forrest said she "would not call it nonexistent."

"I would say there are still issues of noise coming from the deck, but the majority of concerns that I have and the majority of problems are from the lot," she said, referring to the public parking lot behind the bar and grill, Mountain Charley's and Pizza My Heart where customers from a mix of establishments congregate.

Police receive an average of four calls per weekend to control the situation in the lot, Forrest said. She also reported that the bar and grill receives fewer calls for police service than other businesses in the area.

Nevertheless, Forrest said, it would be in the bar's best interest to put up a sound barrier.

"It couldn't hurt, because anything we can do to reduce the noise out there is good for the residents and the village inn," she said.

Bruce Sumpter, owner of the Los Gatos Village Inn Motel across the street from the parking lot, has said in the past that guests complain about the unruly behavior of customers at the alcohol-serving establishments. In her discussions with Sumpter, Forrest said, he has indicated an improvement in the situation since the bar and grill hired new security guards and took other measures to reduce noise.

Councilman Pirzynski reported he had heard noise coming from the common deck area around midnight one recent Saturday.

"I'm not convinced that the noise abatement screening is still not appropriate. From my observation, it's still a useful part of the process," said Pirzynski, adding that a sound wall is especially important, since security guards are there to control rowdy behavior and not so much noise levels.

Vice Mayor Steve Glickman initiated a motion to allow the Los Gatos Bar & Grill to postpone erecting a sound barrier, but it was defeated by a 3-2 vote—Mayor Sandy Decker and Councilwoman Diane McNutt joining Pirzynski in opposition. Councilman Mike Wasserman supported the motion, agreeing with Glickman that the problem was not from the deck area.

At the same time, council members concurred that there is a larger problem in town with regard to the level of control alcohol-serving establishments have over their customers. Town staff, including the chief of police, will meet with all the establishments to look at their management styles, expand the roles of security guards and bouncers and review the businesses' use permits.

"It's just going to take an effort from all parties, not just [Los Gatos Bar & Grill, Mountain Charley's and Pizza My Heart], but including the town and the other bars and establishments operating late into the evenings," Farwell said.