EAST LIBERTY has had good times and bad times, and one of its bigger challenges has been to overcome the harm done 40 years ago -- urban renewal that turned into urban destruction and throttled the life out of the East End community in a collar of ring roads and high-rise public housing. But, as many Pittsburghers know, the challenge is being met. East Liberty, while it still has problems, is on the upswing and last week readers of The New York Times were let in on the secret. In Wednesday's Business Day section, under the headline "Slumbering Pittsburgh Neighborhood Reawakens," Pittsburgh freelance writer Christine H. O'Toole gave East Liberty its due, crediting a community plan led by East Liberty Development Inc. and the arrival of Home Depot, Whole Foods and developments like Eastside and Bakery Square with making the neighborhood attractive to national retailers and others. In East Liberty, urban renewal is being given new meaning.

OLD ECONOMY Village in Ambridge needs its own renewal, but for the moment it remains a victim of Pennsylvania's continuing bad times. A National Historic Landmark with 17 buildings of beautiful simplicity, it was home to a 19th-century Christian sect known as the Harmony Society and for years offered visitors a fascinating glimpse into a disappeared way of life. Not any more. Because of state budget cuts slapped on the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission last year, Old Economy Village had to close its doors. But a new year has brought the start of new budget deliberations in Harrisburg and last week a key figure, Rep. Dwight Evans of Philadelphia, the Democrat who heads the House Appropriations Committee, paid a visit. Invited by freshman Rep. Robert Matzie, D-Ambridge, Mr. Evans met with dozens of people who care about the site and want it reopened. He went away impressed and cautiously optimistic that something could be done. Of course, it all depends on the budget figures, but it would be good for the cause of history and Beaver County's redevelopment hopes if this old attraction could be revived. Volunteers stand ready to help, but any practical plan will require a state role.