The 9 percent pay increase given to the Port of Seattle Manager Tay Yoshitani is outrageous. Raising his pay from $334,300 to $366,825 is totally inappropriate.

The $32,525 increase is more than many Highline families earn. (Governor Christine Gregoire receives only $166,891.) Port Commissioners Gael Tarleton and John Creighton must be commended for voting against the raise. Yoshitani has an interesting record of expensive changes but few outstanding achievements.

The Port still receives corporate welfare in the form of $73.5 million property tax assessment from King County Taxpayers. How does the Port justify a 3.5% general raise when schools are facing huge cuts and many homeowners are hurting from increased property taxes?

How does the Port justify exporting a major bulk of the 31.5 million airport tourists and passengers on foreign flag cruise ships from Seattle docks to Alaska and the Orient at King County taxpayer expense? When was the last time a new hotel was built? Those potential tourist dollars are being wasted by lack of management imagination.

The Port moved a record 2.1 million containers. HOWEVER, the bulk of those containers represented lost American jobs and dollars being exported due to an unfavorable balance of trade against the United States. Is that a plus?

The Feb 22nd commission meeting at Sea-Tac Airport mentioned the unfavorable balance of air cargo trade from Sea-Tac with a slightly unfavorable balance to the Orient and a horrendous imbalance to Europe. Afterwards a local clique suggested a ramp across highway SR-518 and an independent fourth runway for cargo, in Burien, north of Sea-Tac. Do we need to export more jobs?

The state has already authorized another airport at a place to be determined. Probably at King County taxpayer expense.

Dan Caldwell
Des Moines