Mayor calls for 2-day shutdown of city

Escalating his dispute with the City Council, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said Tuesday he is preparing to shut down large parts of city government for two days a week starting Monday because of the city's budget crisis.Daily News.

The shutdown will focus on departments not involved in emergency response or revenue generation. That is likely to include libraries, parks, city clerk, planning and public works, among others. Those staying open would include police, fire and sanitation.

The mayor's announcement came a day after the Department of Water and Power refused to make a $73.5 million transfer to the city's general fund because the City Council had rejected a rate hike for the utility. City Controller Wendy Greuel warned Monday that the city is likely to run out of cash by May 5 without the transfe