"We recognize the frustration of the people of East Cambridge," Born said. "We will rezone East Cambridge before the end of the moratorium."

According to Maher, most zoning proposals before the council require the votes of six out of the nine councillors. But because of the written dissent of landowners who own about one-fifth of the property in the city, including Harvard and MIT--which together own about 15 percent of Cambridge--last night's proposal required a seven-councillor majority, he said.

Councillor Marjorie C. Decker, a frequent critic of the University, promptly upbraided Harvard and MIT.

"MIT and Harvard, you made it more difficult for us," Decker said.

Few of the more than 60 people who spoke before the council last night were in favor of the revised plan.

Business leaders--including representatives from Cambridge's burgeoning biotechnology industry--said the guidelines of the revised petition, despite being fewer in number than in the original plan, were too strict, while neighborhood activists offered impassioned pleas for the passing or refiling of the original plan.

"East Cambridge has been overwhelmed by development. If East Cambridge or Alewife are excluded, the whole city will suffer," said Jon Baring-Gould, an East Cambridge resident.