A proposal to allow the Davis
Square restaurant permission to stay open until 1 a.m. on weeknights
and 2 a.m. on weekends for the next 60 days will be up for a vote again
at the Feb. 12 meeting. It will take three aldermen to table the item
again.

The votes stood 6-1 in favor of the measure when Vice
President Jack Connolly, who serves at-large, invoked Section 15 of the
city charter. The rule allows votes to be tabled when two or more
Aldermen are absent.

"It was clear to me that a lot of
information was being absorbed by everybody, and perhaps two more weeks
of waiting was not going to be crippling," Connolly said after the
meeting. "I think it would be helpful for the discussion."

Ward
6 Aldermen Rebekah Gewirtz, like Connolly a neighbor of the restaurant,
walked out of the meeting after being reprimanded for swearing.

"I
think we're making it into a much bigger deal than it is," Gewirtz said
later. "We've used (Golden Light) as something to be made an example
out of. For someone who's been in business for so long, it's important
he have the ability to keep fair hours."

The Board of Aldermen's
most recent attempt to curtail the restaurant's hours began in October
after Connolly brought up noise complaints he had received.

Gewirtz,
who beat Connolly for the Ward 6 seat in 2005 after serving 22 years as
the incumbent, has defended the establishment. She has cited both a
petition by residents in support of the extended hours and a lack of
complaints from a senior living center across the street as evidence
that the restaurant's violations have not been an issue for her
constituents.

Connolly said several Golden Light neighbors have
complained to him, and that a petition from residents opposing the
extended hours may be in the works.

The Committee on Licenses
and Permits voted to extend the restaurant's hours at its Jan. 22
meeting. The measure was approved by a 2-0 vote, with Ward 2 Alderman
Maryann Heuston and Connolly not present.

In granting the
request for extended hours, both Ward 7 Alderman Robert Trane and
Committee Chair Bruce Desmond told Golden Light owner Bruce Lam that
this was a last chance to abide by the rules – which Lam seems to have
been violating for most of his 26 years in Davis Square.

At the
committee meeting, Desmond pointed out Lam's continued violation of his
hours despite the committee's previous attempts to allow the hours to
be extended on Christmas and New Year's Eve.

"I feel like I've extended myself trying to help you…and then you violated that as well," Desmond said.

Eight
people, including Lam's first delivery person and first customer, spoke
in favor of allowing the extended hours. All speakers noted the
necessity of Lam's extended hours both as a late-night

option for Somerville residents and for the restaurant's survival.

No one showed up to speak against the request.

As
the hearing ended, Lam stressed the importance of the Golden Light to
late-night workers. "A lot of people are hungry after one (a.m.) – taxi
drivers, police after work. If you keep me open after one I'll keep the
place clean and people will have a place to eat if they're hungry," he
said.

Lam said he would put up a new signing stating his new
hours, and that he would try to keep customers seeking after-hours food
at bay.

Police Chief Anthony Holloway and Captain John O'Connor,
West Somerville substation commander, said they remained concerned that
Lam's lack of compliance with the current hours placed a burden on the
department. O'Connor said more than sixty direct patrol calls had been
requested for Golden Light in the past month and a half.

"He's
got to understand that two o'clock means two o'clock," Holloway said.
"We send officers by there and he's open 45 minutes, an hour later. He
was instructed one time to close, shook his head yes to my captain,
then stayed open."

O'Connor added that Lam had recently been
caught serving customers out of the back door after he had been
instructed three times to close.

"He needs to comply with the
rules that are out there," Holloway said. Turning to Lam, he added,
"Other than that, we don't care how late you stay open. It doesn't
bother us."

Connolly said he hopes the two weeks to consider the vote may change some votes.

"Perhaps
they'll say 'Hey maybe we need to be a little more emphatic.' I've seen
a lot of votes change over two weeks, and this will give people another
chance to heard on it," he said. "Citywide, it's not a huge issue, but
what that is doing is setting the table for more petitions for more
late night places. If it's business first and neighbors second, you've
got to draw the line."