City councilors will take their time in reviewing regulations regarding restaurants serving alcoholic beverages in their outdoor seating areas, agreeing last week to send a bill on the topic to their Licenses and Permits Committee.

Ward 2 Councilor Greg Earls urged his fellow councilors last week to suspend their rules and allow a measure, sponsored by at-large Councilor Kathleen O'Connor Ives, to have an approved first reading, while still going to the council's License and Permits Committee, saying the summer is going by and the next council meeting isn't until Aug. 10 under the council's summer schedule, but businesses have applications pending.

Oregano's and the Port Tavern both have requests pending before the council, asking for the ability to serve alcohol to outside diners.

Other councilors balked at pushing the measure forward too quickly.

At-large Councilor Tom Jones said he wanted input from the police as to how they view the situation.

"I'm not convinced that since the season is flying by, we should fly as well," Ward 1 Councilor Larry McCavitt said.

Earls disputed claims that councilors would be rushing forward with it, saying they agreed to skip two meetings when they voted on their meeting schedule in January, but the move is hurting the public who has to wait for votes.

"We're making up for our own laziness," he said. "We still have four weeks. We're not rushing, we're just skipping the council meeting."

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The City Council will examine a measure by Ward 1 Councilor Larry McCavitt that calls for banning parking on Water Street from Federal Street to Independent Street, on the south side.

Over the years, McCavitt told councilors last Monday, he has "received numerous complaints" from constituents about cars parking in that area. Recently, organizers of the farmers market at the Tannery have started putting up traffic cones to block parking in that area as well, McCavitt said.

The bill was referred to the City Council's Public Safety Committee.

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Mayor John Moak questioned last week whether the odor that filled the neighborhood around the Crow Lane landfill over the Fourth of July weekend was from the landfill capping, saying he is "98 percent certain" the smell was caused from something else.

The mayor said he smelled the odor, which he categorized as "a smoldering smell" like a dying fire, at his own house on Marlboro Street earlier in the night on July 5 before the Crow Lane landfill abutters e-mailed complaints about it.

"It seemed like a lingering fire from another community," Moak said.

The same odor was also reported at the fire station and on Longfellow Drive, Moak said. The Fire Department investigated with other communities, but none reported having any fires that evening.

"I could not tell you what that odor was," the mayor said, but added that the landfill odors have never traveled down to the South End.

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The following meetings have been scheduled and are open to the public:

Monday

Housing Authority, 5 p.m., Temple Street

City Council landfill ad-hoc committee, 7 p.m., City Hall Council Chamber

Tuesday

Conservation Commission, 7 p.m., City Hall Council Chambers

Wednesday

Redevelopment Authority, 7 p.m., City Hall Council Chambers

Thursday

Sewer Commission, 5 p.m., Public Services building, Perry Way

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Katie Farrell covers Newburyport for The Daily News. She can be reached at 978-462-6666, ext. 3232, or by e-mail at kfarrell@newburyportnews.com.