More than 100 Mt. Lebanon residents faced off politely this morning outside the township's municipal building on Washington Road.

Commissioner Matthew Kluck held a town meeting inside the building for 80 invited guests while about 50 protestors picketed outside. The meeting's topic was "Perspectives on Living in and Governing a Highly Taxed Community."

Dividing the two groups is the $113.3 million plan to renovate Mt. Lebanon Senior High School. Protestors say they fear that Mr. Kluck and his supporters seek to delay or reduce the scope of the project.

But Mr. Kluck described the meeting as an open discussion and denied that project supporters had been barred from the session.

"This is exactly what I like to see--people getting involved in their community," Mr. Kluck said as he chatted with the pickets before his meeting started. He said his meeting was not closed to school renovation supporters, but that space was limited in the municipal building to only about 80 people.

"All the tickets are gone," he said, explaining why neither pickets nor reporters were allowed into the session.

Fen Labalme, one of the protestors, said he feared that residents unfamiliar with the school renovation issue might believe the meeting organized by Mr. Kluck represented the general opinion of Mt. Lebanon residents.

"What upsets me is this is a private meeting billed as public meeting," Mr. Labalme said.

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