N.C.s coming of age

t took more than a decade of growing pains, but Los Angeles neighborhood councils are finally finding their footing and realizing that they can be a driving force in city issues, especially at a time of deep budget cuts, members and officials said Saturday.C.J. Lin in the Daily News,

The city's 95 community groups have been vital in keeping pressure on the city in prioritizing core services as it grapples with limited funding as a result of a $550 million deficit, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said at the 2011 L.A. Congress of Neighborhoods.

"They have been instrumental for us in helping us put together a budget," Villaraigosa said. "They have been very innovative and have pushed us to do more."