The city of Bend says it needs to spend some $80 million over the next five years to get city roads to a solid B-minus rating.

OK, what would that take?

The problem for Bend residents is that the city has not yet spelled out the choices and alternatives.

The city argues roads are so important that it is necessary to raise taxes to pay for them. Does everything the city does meet that same standard? Would it go to voters to raise taxes for every existing program in the two-year, $90 million general fund budget and every staff member?

The city’s 2015-17 budget allocated about $3.5 million a year for roads. The city has come up with another $1.87 million mostly by tapping into reserves. There’s the possibility of a nickel-a-gallon gas tax that might bring in $2.5 million a year. A transportation utility fee could also be implemented, without a public vote.

But there are many, many more unknowns. The options and their trade-offs have only been discussed in abstraction.

There has been talk about a bond. Mayor Jim Clinton says something like a gas tax is going to be necessary — no matter what choices are made about dividing up the city budget. There has been talk about not cutting department budgets but reducing the rate of increase. If that is done, there is worry that there will be some reductions in service levels for public safety. How much?

The community might support more money from the general fund going to roads for a small sacrifice in the growth in the public safety budget. Without specific proposals that explain the costs and benefits, though, it’s impossible for the community to get a sense of what it might support.

The community and the council need some options to pick from. Give them to us.