The collapse of the Cleveland Street retaining wall during heavy rains last Sunday evening added another entry to the city's troubling list of deterioration.

But what followed the collapse was more eye-opening than the collapse itself, because it provides evidence of a potentially bigger problem. That problem is a lack of communication within the city government.

Who could have imagined that the city's director of streets - Councilman Mitch Ufner - would not be told about the wall's collapse within a reasonable amount of time after the problem occurred? Cleveland Street residents were aware of what happened within minutes and notified the city, which sent personnel to assess the situation within a commendable time frame.

Ufner didn't learn about what happened until about 3 p.m. on Monday, when he was called by a Butler Eagle reporter.

While city personnel responded quickly by checking what had happened - wall debris was lying on Cleveland Street - it's puzzling why the department head responsible for streets was kept "out of the loop."

Ufner doesn't need to know every detail about what streets department workers are doing at any given time. However, he should have been given the news that the wall, which has been the subject of much debate in recent weeks over who would be responsible for repairs, had now defied repair efforts.

There ought to be a policy in effect at the city building about keeping officials informed. Considering what happened last Sunday night and most of Monday, Ufner should position himself at the forefront of achieving the kind of communication city government needs.

The Saxonburg Area Authority has recorded another achievement in kicking off its $43 million sewage treatment expansion project, involving at least six municipalities in southern Butler and northern Allegheny counties. Project construction is scheduled to get under way next year and be completed in 2007.At the heart of the project will be significant environmental benefits - the decommissioning of an estimated 1,000 malfunctioning on-lot sewer systems, elimination of illegal sewage discharges, and decommissioning of 10 privately owned sewage treatment plants. The project also is aimed at eliminating pollution in the Thorn and Glade Run creeks.Included in the project will be a new 2 million-gallons-a-day treatment plant in Penn Township, replacing the current plant on Dinnerbell Road, which will be converted to a pumping station; more than 53,000 feet of force main line; and more than 368,000 feet of gravity sewers.There will be six pumping stations.The project, which will end duplication of services in the communities involved and bring cost savings to customers over the long run, has been embraced by state and federal officials because of its regional approach.The growth in southern Butler County made the need to properly address sewage issues inevitable. That day has come, and fortunately it is getting under way on a positive note.It is to be hoped that only positive news will emanate from the large-scale effort as it proceeds toward completion.

Troubling news keeps surfacing about the Pennsylvania State Police, and it's time that the state police commissioner take a hard line about shenanigans that damage the department's image and erode the public's respect for its personnel.Those who allegedly had any part in a highway relay on March 31 to deliver three boxes of freshly baked bread to Maj. Richard Zenk, who heads the Hershey-based Bureau of Emergency and Special Operations, should be put under oath or be administered polygraph tests to ascertain what actually happened. Zenk, who denied the allegations, which were reported by a Philadelphia newspaper, shouldn't be exempted from answering questions under those terms.The highway relay, which spanned a distance of 75 miles, allegedly involved troopers who were on duty at the Hazleton, Frackville and Jonestown barracks.Last year, more than 160 misconduct complaints against troopers surfaced, and 68 of those complaints, from incidents that occurred from 1995 to 2001, were substantiated. Earlier this month, it was reported that state police officials were investigating a party at a Ford City restaurant on April 3 at which at least eight troopers from the Kittanning barracks allegedly paid for sexual favors from strippers.Meanwhile, troopers who drive Gov. Ed Rendell's car have been observed transporting the state's chief executive at speeds exceeding 100 mph. - while other motorists pay stiff fines for lesser violations of speed limits.The state police must commit themselves to higher standards than these situations indicate. That commitment must originate from the highest levels of the department.The probes under way should reflect that thinking.- J.R.K.