The fact that City Hall would come to the voters (Seattle Proposition No. 1) for additional dollars to fund a most basic service while they spend large sums on lesser priorities - some not priorities at all - is disturbing.

Politicians' standard line is "it will only cost, in this case, $169 per year for the average home." But the average Seattle family already pays 44 percent of their income, or $37,000 per year not including the cost of regulations. This is a big hit for middle- and low-income families or seniors on a fixed income who may be forced from their homes.

The mayor would have us believe that transportation department budgets have been reduced in recent years. A review of the Seattle Department of Transportation's budgets over the past decade shows an increase from $44,470,957 in 1996 to $177,128,000 in 2006. This is a 302 percent increase during which time inflation rose 35 percent; an increase of almost 10 times the rate of inflation.

The last significant transportation project in the city was the West Seattle Bridge in 1982.

The worst problems have not been fixed or even seriously addressed, i.e.: The Mercer Mess and Spokane Street. There are miles of roads where cracking is prevalent. A simple inexpensive seal would add years to the life of the road. Feeder roads and arterials alike need fixing. Passing a crew, we see five people doing a two-person job; two people doing a one-person job.

City Hall now wants us to pay for yet another round of inefficiencies while they are $500 million behind in maintenance.

After 35 years in private-sector planning, scheduling and managing of major projects. I believe we have already paid for things in the transportation proposals we are not getting because planning is very poor or nonexistent, productivity is very low, priorities are heavily influenced by special interests and management is inadequate.

City Hall is taking an essential service, "road maintenance." and attempting to get a levy to pay for it. Most taxpayers would not see $37 million for the Seattle Center; or $87 million for human services; or $55 million for DCLU as "basic" services such as fire, police or roads.

If we, the voters pass this it will be seen as a green light to put other really "basic" and essential services on a special levy and we the taxpayers will get even less value for our dollars.

This levy will generate $365 million from property taxes and another $180 million from parking and employees taxes. Of that, 65 percent will go to repairs and maintenance of roads, bridges and sidewalks, 10 percent will go to "system enhancements" and 25 percent will go to a myriad of other things like "improvements" for bikes, pedestrians and safety and "enhanced transit services." Now we learn that $13.3 million of the $18.5 million price tag for the major green initiative will come from the "bridging the gap" fund. Is this really a slush fund? If we are voting on a fix for a $500 million backlog of transportation system problems, we deserve accountability.

We need an independent review of what we are getting for our transportation dollar. Some cities are opting for private management. Neither the five-year Capital Improvement Plan nor the new tax plan has anything about Mercer or Spokane Streets bottlenecks. The regional plan is in disarray. Before we agree on "bridging the gap," we need to develop a plan that establishes what we are paying for:

- Elevated viaduct or tunnel

- 520 Bridge

- Magnolia Bridge

- Sound Transit expansion

- Rework of the existing monorail

- Lake Union light rail

Before coming to the taxpayer for more, develop a Capital Improvement Plan that addresses the real issues. The mayor asks for the moon. The council almost never pushes back. The middle- and lower-income residents of the city cannot keep up.

Voting "no" would be a powerful statement. The city has to show some compassion for the people who pay the tax bills. The average Seattle resident cannot afford to pay for basic maintenance that piled up as a necessity over the years and build the city of the future all at once.

Jim Coombes is a West Seattle resident experienced in private sector planning, scheduling and management of major projects who says his property taxes have increased from $147 in 1974 to $8,100 in 2006, a 5,400 percent increase and can be reached via wseditor@robinsonnews.com.