SAN ANTONIO — Parker Dixon alway has trouble with bar patrons parking in the narrow street in front of his house. His trash and recycle bins are a temporary solution. 

“So this is to prevent bar traffic from parking on our street and it has helped tremendously,” Dixon said standing in front of his bins. 

He has to do this because he lives next to one of most popular bars in San Antonio, the St. Mary’s Strip. But he says his concerns have been addressed by his councilperson Mario Bravo. 

“Just this week I talked with the city about trying to move forward with one of the parking solutions. They told me, let’s explore doing a traffic study,” Bravo says. 

Dixon hopes that it can result in residential parking, but another issue that raises concern in this community is the bar music adjacent to the homes.

“It’s still a difficult situation. It’ll be better that they are not exceeding the commercial noise level,” Dixon says. 

The city’s code compliance department started a noise ordinance pilot program where they are addressing calls for loud noises and vibrations. It was only supposed be a three-month pilot, but Bravo says that this is going to last a little bit longer so that they can collect accurate data. 

John Michael Villanuevea is part owner of Midnight Swim and he says he’s doing everything to accommodate the community. 

“I have respect for everyone, and right now we stay under the decibel level and we make sure we take decibel readings every hour,” Villanueva says. “It just feels like a lot sometimes and we are navigating it at the best of our abilities.” 

He says it's the most pressure he’s ever felt as a business owner. 

“When I talk to people who have been here for decades, they say it comes in waves — every so often, the neighborhood will push and push and push and it will let off,” Villanueva says. 

Dixon says he doesn’t want any of the bars to close down and he’s appreciative of the strides they’ve made for the residents. He says it’s all up to the city at this point. 

“Let’s stop talking the talk and start walking the walk,” Dixon says.