ESCONDIDO -- The City Council voted Wednesday to leave two-thirds of the Escondido Public Library's computers unfiltered but voted to block a request to allow wineries under 10 acres into residential neighborhoods.

The council voted 3-2 to stick with the library board's policy of keeping 20 computers filtered but leaving 40 others -- 19 adults-only computers, 15 in the computer center and six in the reference room -- unfiltered but monitored by library staff.

The filtering system is software that blocks access to Internet sites containing obscene material. The software identifies the sites by particular words, but has prompted complaints of blocking legitimate Web sites.

Instead of filters, the library board recommended new controls like increasing the age of adult users from 16 to 18 years old and adding the right to check identification if the age is questioned. The council tacked on a request to review the policy at least once a year.

Council members Marie Waldron and Ed Gallo voted against filter-free computers, arguing that it uses taxpayer money to access porn and could inadvertently expose children to the sexually-explicit material.

But the majority sided with the library staff and board who said that despite 145,000 people using library computers last year, they barely averaged one complaint each month.

"I don't think there is anything more precious than children and we want to protect them," said Councilman Ron Newman. "But we are talking about a topic that is not a problem. I don't see the need to make change other than what the library board is already doing."

The roughly 10 people who spoke Wednesday afternoon split on whether the library computers need to be filtered.

"Filtering is just another word for censorship," said Lois Winsen, a 78-year-old Escondido resident. "The purpose of a library is to give open access to everybody to learn and explore. We can't prevent that."

But Jim Lund, a local attorney, argued that filtering the Internet is not censorship.

"The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that all smut is not allowed by law," he said. "Our library does not have a duty to provide everything."

He added that the court determined that the library needs to provide information that is the "greatest direct benefit" to the public.

"We need to separate the gold from the garbage," Lund said.

In other news, the council reconvened Wednesday evening to unanimously deny a request by a local vintner to change city zoning to allow small wineries in residential neighborhoods.

The council sided with the neighbors, city staff and the Planning Commission against San Pasqual Winery owner Paul Marx's request to open a tasting room at his Sierra Linda Drive home.

Escondido allows wineries in the city's commercial zones, while home-based businesses can manufacture, but not sell wine. The council's vote changes the law to allow wineries 10 acres or bigger to operate in residential neighborhoods, excluding most property owners from entering the wine business in Escondido neighborhoods.

"People talk about Temecula but the wineries were there first," Gallo said. "There is a big difference between there and here where the housing is there and the wineries want to come in."

The vote prohibits Marx's 1.3 acre property from opening for business. Marx was not at the meeting Wednesday evening but in a Jan. 12 letter to the council, he argued that restricting the size to no smaller than 10 acres would "raise the financial hurdle rate for wineries so high that few or none would bother to build wineries in Escondido."

He added that such restrictions do not bode well for Escondido's goal of increasing job opportunities.

"Wineries are small cottage industries which require government nurturing," he wrote. "In this age of good jobs being exported elsewhere, the winery is an economic opportunity to keep jobs in Escondido."

Contact staff writer Erin Massey at (760) 740-5416 or emassey@nctimes.com.