In her line of work came dealings with the all-too-realistic but sometimes lighthearted issues of the modern-day city, from budget cuts to bureaucratic and political corruption, and the socioeconomic travails of inner-city life.
Despite the turmoil that often ensued because of these problems, Liz focused on them with much exuberance, with a little kookiness thrown in, which ultimately made this a return to the type of character that first brought Harper fame on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Rhoda in the early 1970s.
Roger Barnett was the assistant city manager who spends most of his time betting on sports and trying to sell a worn-out racehorse he owns.
Wanda Jenkins was the sarcastic black secretary, who often discussed how she did not want her young son to turn out like his father, a composer of classical music who actually made very little money.
She meets Gloria Elgis, the city social coordinator, a stereotypically beautiful airhead spoiled by her wealthy family; Lance Armstrong, the creepy statistician; and Victor Sloboda, a dumb security guard, who in one episode thought a bandit had stolen the entire supply of White-Out for use in processing records for illegal immigrants.
City even used the same Cooper Black credit font that The Hogan Family had been using during all seasons in which Harper's replacement on that series, Sandy Duncan, had starred.