Year One, the highs and lows
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HIGHS
■ City Council approves his first city budget by 50-to-0 vote
■ General Assembly approves Chicago casino and speed cameras
■ Aldermen approve $1.7 billion Infrastructure Trust bankrolled by private investors
■ City goes 24 hours without a single homicide
■ City Council passes new ward map without referendum or court fight
■ Mayor touts attracting as many as 15,000 private sector jobs at 21 companies.
■ Improves business climate with head tax relief, license cuts and ten-year plan
■ Hosts summit of Nobel Laureates that showcased Chicago and brought former peace prize winners into Chicago Public Schools
■ Launches colleges-to-careers makeover of City Colleges
■ Merges tourism agencies
LOWS
■ President Barack Obama moves G-8 summit from Chicago to Camp David
■ City sees 52 percent spike in homicide rate
■ NATO protesters accuse mayor of going too far in trying to silence them with “sit-down-and-shut-up” ordinances ■ Critics accuse mayor of trying to muscle schools to implement longer school day
■ Library budget cuts trigger resignation of Commissioner Mary Dempsey
■ Plan to close six mental health clinics sparks continuing protests.
■ Speed-camera plan meets strong aldermanic resistance.
■ Critics accuse mayor of ramming through Infrastructure Trust without providing specifics
■ Credit card abuses trigger resignation of Chicago Housing Authority and Chicago Park District chiefs
■ Labor spurns demand for work rule changes
