Year of tests for mayor, council

The mayor
This was a year in which Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa found himself tested on almost every skill he has learned in his years in public life: Daily News.

Devastation with the Metrolink crash and wildfires and having to provide comfort to those who have lost everything - families, homes, possessions

The Council

For Los Angeles City Council members, 2008 will go down as the year when their dreams of re-creating the city ran face to face into economic realities. Daily News.

Los Angeles faced high unemployment, reduced property values and the stark realization that years of continued growth had reached an end.