The wildly escalating cost of Oahu rail has a way of poisoning other city projects, even when they seem unrelated.

With rail $4 billion to $5 billion over budget, depending who’s counting, funding for other priority needs is impacted, whether directly or indirectly.

And the endless misrepresentations by city leaders about the real cost of rail has bred widespread public and legislative distrust of their word as they pursue other costly initiatives.

The latest collision of rail and reality came last week when Mayor Kirk Caldwell found himself in a scrap with a key state legislator over his proposed $700 million renovation of Blaisdell Center.

House Speaker Scott Saiki, who has grudgingly agreed to two state rail bailouts totaling more than $3 billion in the last three years, scolded Caldwell that the Blaisdell funds “could be better spent on mitigation of unanticipated future rail construction cost increases.”

“Oahu taxpayers cannot take the brunt of paying for rail construction, rail operations and this project,” Saiki wrote to Caldwell.

The mayor responded that rail and Blaisdell funds come from “completely different sources” and accused Saiki of trying “to confuse the public.”

In other words, more of the fiscal gymnastics he’s played with rail since he became involved in 2008 as former Mayor Mufi Hannemann’s managing director.

Money is money, and all public funds ultimately come from taxes, a well that runs only so deep; funds stuffed into one pocket must come from other pockets in the end, and to say otherwise is disingenuous.

It’s way too early to think rail funding is settled and we’re clear to move on to other civic luxuries.

Caldwell himself has claimed the legislative rail bailout is $500 million to $1 billion short of what’s needed.

There’s no funding source yet for some $120 million a year in rail operations after the system opens, and the City Council has struggled to come up with $160 million in rail administrative costs that the Legislature passed back to the city.

Competition for public works dollars isn’t just between glamour projects like rail and the Blaisdell; the city has more basic funding needs to address homelessness and fix our crumbling infrastructure.

As priorities go, losing the Miss Universe pageant because the Blaisdell isn’t up to snuff is hardly the biggest tragedy facing our city.

In the terminology of Caldwell’s old boss Hannemann, an expensive Blaisdell renovation is a “nice to have,” not a “need to have.”

Caldwell is term-limited out in 2020 and it’s late in the game to build monuments to himself.

Brainstorming the Blaisdell’s future is fine, but no final design or construction funds should be committed until they can be vetted by the next mayor, who hopefully will bring proven ability to oversee big projects and promises that can be believed.

Reach David Shapiro at volcanicash@gmail.com.