Rob Waters, Staff Writer 

Congratulations to the winners on Tuesday: Mayor Bill Bell, and council members Diane Catotti, Eugene Brown and Farad Ali.

Good things lie ahead in the coming few years. The downtown renaissance is gathering momentum. Some troubled neighborhoods are getting better. Some innovative strategies for dealing with crime show promise. Our elected leaders can look forward to taking some credit when these and other good things come to pass.

Holding elected office won't be a total bed of roses, though. Some challenges also lie ahead, and I predict there will be some days when Bell will wish someone else were mayor.

First, there's the water crisis. It's not coming -- it's here. There's little a mayor or council can do at this point other than hold a team-building rain dance and vigorously promote conservation. But when things get thoroughly nasty next summer, they'll be the ones taking plenty of heat.

And 2008 also looks like the year when the lacrosse-case bills start coming due. The Duke players' lawsuit against the city will be costly, whether it's settled or slugged out in federal court. It'll probably take years, and the outside lawyers will be billing by the hour.