The music cut-off time, though, was a deal-killer

“It impacts our ability to police other bars,” McCarthy said.

McCarthy said he had a good working relationship with Gilson, and noted that many of the elements of the “special conditions” he was recommending to the council came from Gilson himself.

They include keeping all doors and windows shut when music is playing; posting a “patron code of conduct;” banning anyone who’s been arrested on or ejected from the property; and immediately reporting actual or imminent criminal activity to the police. Gilson is also to meet monthly with McCarthy to review policies and activities.

The music cut-off time, though, was a deal-killer. Williams said that because of changes in bar patronage in recent years, customers are showing up later, with the majority of Fixx’s clientele on a Friday or Saturday arriving after midnight.

Williams made no attempt to hide his intent to appeal the council’s decision if it adopted McCarthy’s recommendations wholesale. That, he said, would cost both Gilson and the borough a lot of money.

Instead, he asked they council to allow Gilson to unplug all live and recorded music at 1:30 a.m., instead of the present shut-off time of 1:45, for the next 90 days, after which the governing body would revisit the question of whether a 1:15 switch-off was needed.

“After 90 days, you have to tell us what the problem is,” he said.

The council, after a 20-minute closed-door discussion, agreed.

Councilman Art Murphy, who serves as police commissioner, made the motion for the compromise without comment, though he had earlier expressed frustration with Gilson’s refusal to accept McCarthy’s demand.