It is welcome news that demolition is on the horizon for the ramshackle garage and attached wooden shed on the corner of Franklin and Main streets in Slippery Rock.

The run down buildings at the prominent intersection have been an eyesore in Slippery Rock for years. And the visual offense only increased as the borough underwent a revitalization effort along Main Street that buried utility wires, and replaced sidewalks, retaining walls and landscaping.

The Butler County Redevelopment Authority announced recently that it was planning to demolish the buildings within the next 60 days, while the authority negotiates a fair value for the property with the heirs of Bill Hullings, the former owner of the gas station who died Dec. 3.

The authority also has committed to cleaning the site of any contaminated soil related to the site's use as a gas station. Once the highly visible corner lot is cleaned up, there is hope that commercial development can be attracted to add to the improvements already visible along other sections of the borough's Main Street.

While the opportunity for development will improve with the removal of the old garage, the property only amounts to about a third of an acre. It's likely that any development of the corner will require agreements with the owners of four or five adjoining properties. And that proved elusive in 2000, when an Ellwood City developer attempted to build a fast-food restaurant on the corner, but could not get sales agreements settled with all the necessary property owners.

Still, the removal of the dilapidated building will be a welcome change in Slippery Rock.

Moniteau School Board members warrant a faint cheer for agreeing that school policy or procedures in the cafeteria need to be examined.But a louder jeer was earned by cafeteria staff who took a away the lunches of at least two children, and instead provided a cheese sandwich and carrots, because the children's lunch accounts had a negative balance.No doubt, it is a challenge to keep track of the status of each child's lunch account, and even more challenging to make sure that all parents maintain a positive balance in the accounts. But, the process of having the cashier in the cafeteria take a child's lunch, even if it is replaced with a cheaper, substitute lunch, is troubling.There must be better system.In a letter to the editor, a grandmother of a student at Dassa McKinney Elementary school who also raised the issue at a school board meeting Monday, said her granddaughter was upset and embarrassed when her lunch tray was taken from her by the cashier and she was provided the alternative lunch.In the school's defense, it is important for parents to keep their child's lunch account paid. The school can't afford to give children lunches without compensation, nor would it be fair to other parents who are paying.Still, the situation in the cafeteria could be handled better. And school board president Doug Kimmey deserves credit for apologizing for the incidents, and also for promising to look into the issue in hopes of developing a better policy.

Recognizing that some challenging economic times lie ahead, the Butler County commissioners implemented a hiring freeze to protect the county's budget.In addition, the commissioners put a freeze on capital expenditures and banned all but the most essential travel expenditures.Rising health care costs and sharp declines in the stock markets, which impacts the county's investments, motivated the freeze.The county's cost-saving measures are similar to a state freeze on hiring and new vehicle purchases or leases instituted by Gov. Ed Rendell that is expected to save the state $200 million or more.Commissioner Dale Pinkerton said the freeze was implemented now so that department heads and row officers could factor the cost-control measure into their 2009 budget plans, which must be approved by the end of the year.Reacting to the county hiring and spending freeze, County Controller Jack McMillin expressed support for the measure, but said, "It should have been done five years ago."He supported that view by noting that county expenses have grown at an average rate of 10 percent a year since 2000, and that the county's payroll has grown by 100 employees in the same time period.While the county's spending freeze is a welcome acknowledgment of current economic realities, McMillin has a point in suggesting that a more conservative fiscal approach would have been appropriate even when times were not so dire.