For the Butler Redevelopment Authority, the sale of the former Wishing Well property has brought to a close a saga that for nearly four years seemed destined to be a much longer-term — and costly — boondoggle.

But instead of a boondoggle, the property is now poised to complement the proposed Centre City redevelopment project, and the authority can be praised for its confidence regarding the city's future and the marketability of that site.

From the authority's standpoint, the only downside is that it was faced with uncertainty about the site for so long.

Thanks to Dr. John Hiras, a downtown dentist, the property is destined for the kind of use that befits its location. Hiras plans to build an office building to house his dental practice and a laboratory.

The part of the building not needed for those uses will be leased. An article in Sunday's Butler Eagle reported that the authority is considering moving its offices to the new building.

Authority offices currently are at the Pullman Business Park on Woody Drive.

Although a city ShadeTree Commission proposal for the Wishing Well site — establishing a park at the site — would have been an acceptable use, the Hiras plan will return the property to business use — a use for which it is better suited.

That means the property will be returned to the tax rolls.

The property is at the downtown's busiest intersection.

Had downtowns, including Butler, retained the vibrancy that existed prior to businesses' exodus to the suburbs, the Wishing Well site might have commanded a higher selling price than what the authority paid to acquire the site and now has received in its sale.

But such a consideration is secondary to the overall health of the downtown business district. Hiras merits praise for his confidence in the downtown now and for the future.

And his confidence sends a positive message to other potential investors.

The former Pepper's Flowers shop, which sits adjacent to the Wishing Well site and which Hiras also bought, is to be part of the dentist's office building plan. Involving the two properties in his plan expands the possibilities for the new building's use beyond the dental practice's needs.

When the authority bought the Wishing Well site, it quickly faced the dilemma of having a building that subsequently was found to be structurally unsound. It also had a spring flowing through one corner of the basement.

The authority's judgment was understandably questioned, and the $82,500 that the authority paid for the building was, in the eyes of some people, money wasted.

Not so anymore. The site is on the threshold of a bright future and the authority is looking good in regard to the Wishing Well venture afterall.

This is the kind of good news downtown Butler needs. Fortunately, the Centre City Project has the potential to provide much more.