"Brown bagging" is the practice of a customer bringing his own bottle of wine or liquor to a restaurant to consume with a meal.

While there had been some opposition to the repeal expressed on the Times-Gazette web site, no one that spoke at Tuesday night's public hearing seemed to object to it.

One citizen asked what the benefits of the repeal would be and Mayor Dennis Webb answered that it could possibly broaden the town's business base. The decision to allow alcohol in an establishment would be up to the owner, Webb said.

Webb also added that the ordinance was unenforceable since Bell Buckle does not currently have a police department or municipal court.

Businessman Greg Heinike, owner of the Bell Buckle Cafe, said that brown bagging had never been an issue in the 14 years he's been in business in the small town and that the liability should remain with the business owner.

Webb also said that town officials had contacted the state's Alcohol Beverage Commission (ABC) for an opinion of the legality of the current ordinance that was repealed.

ABC Assistant Director Carolyn Smith said that the repeal was good because the town should not have the measure on their books.

"It is not our responsibility to try to control alcohol," Webb said. "She stated that the only way we could have it on our books is if we allow liquor by the drink. If we kept this ordinance, it would only put the town in possibly legal jeopardy."

The repeal was introduced last month by Alderman Mark Felices, who stated that he did not want to "change the character of the town," but that it was a bad law because there was no way to enforce it and that the current law infringes on the rights of customers and businesses.

In other business, the board voted to send a letter to the county election commission requesting permission to conduct an election in August for two aldermen.

Also approved was a new employee retirement program, which was described by Alderman James Anderson as a simple Individual Retirement Account (IRA) with the town contributing three percent of the employee's salary. Bell Buckle currently has no retirement plan.

Some additional renovations to town hall are in the works. The board voted to seek bids on work that needs to be done in the rear of the building, which is to be used for records storage and an office for water manager Ronnie Lokey, who will need a central location for computer equipment to monitor water system telemetry.

In his other role as fire chief, Lokey told the board that the volunteer fire department's recent chili cook-off was a great success and stated that the department's recent portrait campaign through Olan Mills gave it $9,130 as part of their share of the proceeds.

Lokey said this was the most money made from a fundraiser like this and that the photos would be available for viewing later this month. The board also approved of placing the department's 1968 Ford fire truck on Govdeals.com to get the best price. Lokey said the department wants to use the proceeds to buy a replacement truck in the future.

Bedford County government has used Govdeals.com extensively to dispose of surplus items over the past few years.

Several items concerning Bell Buckle Park were addressed. The board approved to allow the Park Board to accept the best bid for mowing at the park. The board also accepted a bid of $3,444 from Sequatchie Concrete for a concrete block for the amphitheater. The Park Board was also given the authority to accept or decline bids related to that project.

The state Forestry Division awarded the Bell Buckle Tree Board $6,000 in funding to replace trees lost last year due to the late freeze and drought. The grant is 50/50 with the Tree Board responsible for half the costs and the planting.

It was also noted that an American flag raised at the park on Jan. 18 as a gift arranged by James Elkins was stolen less than a week later. A handicap parking sign at the park was also vandalized.