Slippery Rock Borough continues to prove that success paves the way for additional success, and the northern Butler County community should continue to be watched by places such as the City of Butler, which eyes major improvement projects of its own.

For Slippery Rock, 2005 means the start of Phase II of its multimillion-dollar renewal effort, which was initially focused on Main Street but now will concentrate on Franklin Street.

With a new $949,900 government grant bolstering this year's effort, leaders are poised to embark on such work as installing new curbing, replacing sidewalks and having utility lines buried.

Projects of this magnitude aren't dumped in the lap of communities; they result from planning, legwork and contacts with higher levels of government.

To its credit, Slippery Rock has been aggressive in all of those ways.