Single-family homes surrounding the post have been inundated with noise, including music and car alarms going off past 10 p.m., according to residents.

Fran Conte, who lives behind the building on De Anza Way, has been lobbying legion leadership to control the noise for three years. He has been writing letters to the legion and calling the San Jose police since 2002.

In his letters, Conte said the noise is so pervasive he is unable to enjoy his backyard or watch television in his home during weekends, because of parties that start in the early afternoon and go into the night. Some of these parties end up with Conte finding beer cans in his backyard.

In August 2004, he was sitting in his backyard with his children when the smell of marijuana drifted over the fence.

In June 2005, Conte began talking to the Willow Glen Neighborhood Association about the problem and in December contacted District 6 Councilman Ken Yeager hoping for assistance in resolving the issue.

Then on Dec. 17, while watching television in his home, he found the noise from a party was so loud, he couldn't take it anymore. He went to a friend's house.

"[The noise] gets me so angry," he said. "I had no idea we'd be subjected to that kind of nuisance."

It was something he never figured on when he moved into his home in 2000.

But his De Anza Way neighbors, Bill and Marlene Gordon, said the noise issue has been a problem for more than a decade. Despite the home's distance from the Post at 1504 Minnesota Ave., Bill Gordon said the sound travels.

"It's like they're right there on the street with a band and a PA," Gordon said.

The building's next-door neighbors on Minnesota Avenue, Russ and Judy Tugh, said they have installed double pane windows to block out the noise.

The neighbors' main gripe is that the parties are supposed to end at 10 p.m., according to the city's noise ordinance. However, parties frequently continue past curfew and Conte calls legion member Gene Fanucchi at his home to come over and shut them down.

The legion rents out the hall 26 weekends a year, often for weddings, birthday and anniversary parties. Fanucchi said all tenants are required to wrap up festivities by 10 p.m.

"We do rent out for revenue and such; we try to ask our tenants to be considerate of that neighborhood," Fanucchi said.

But neighbors claim tenants aren't listening.

"It's kind of like they'll go until somebody stops them," Gordon said. "It's not important to them, it's not their neighborhood, it's not their house."

In other parts of Willow Glen, neighbors living near noisy sites such as the former D's Bar and Restaurant could rely on a conditional use permit to set restrictions on operating hours. Such restrictions balanced business interests with neighborhood quiet. These restrictions were enforceable by the city, which could levy fines and shut down a business if the business was not complying.

However, the post's building predates conditional use permit regulations, according to legion commander Garry McLeod, who works for the San Jose code enforcement division. The building was constructed in 1941 on county land. At the time there were no surroundings houses, McLeod said.

On a larger level, the legion tries to work with the community by holding community fairs and allocating profits from party rentals to scholarships for Willow Glen High School students.

"Our goal is to give something back to the community," McLeod said.

Both McLeod and Fanucchi said the legion is looking at ways to abate the problem, by imposing certain requirements such as keeping the back door closed during indoor parties so noise can't drift into the neighborhood. It is also considering rules about parking lot loitering and restricting to whom it rents.

But Conte and neighborhood association past president Helen Solinksi want to bring together neighbors, the legion, the city and the neighborhood association to mediate the problem.

Minnesota Avenue neighbor Russ Tugh said he met with McLeod last year and nothing was resolved. He hopes future efforts will be more successful.

"We're looking forward to trying to resolve it," McLeod said. "We've been there so many years, we want harmony."

Conte would also like to find harmony over the issue. He thinks one solution would be for the Legion to require a representative to attend every party to ensure renters are being responsible and respectful of the neighborhood.

"There's no supervision, no accountability at all," Conte said.