The mayor, but little else, is changing in Sunfish Lake. That evidently is what is wanted by the 504 residents in 184 homes, many of which are at the end of long private driveways.

"It's an unreal situation. We're an island of green space in a burgeoning metropolitan area,'' said Mayor Francis Tiffany, 75, who leaves office Tuesday.

"We want to keep it that way. We don't want change or higher-density developments."

The new mayor, Molly Park, 53 and the first woman in the role, said her mission is to preserve "the lovely oasis" of dream homes and private ponds on large lots. On a good day, she can stay in touch with constituents by taking a bicycle ride.

The Dakota County suburb, which incorporated in 1958, is zoned exclusively for single-family homes. No apartments or businesses are allowed. The minimum lot size is 2.5 acres, but many are larger. The city has four churches and three private lakes within its pristine limits of 1.7 square miles.

Sunfish Lake has no city employees, city hall or community center. All residents have septic tanks; no one is on the sewer system. The city is not part of a municipal water system. Consultants and contractors provide services on an annual budget of roughly $250,000. West St. Paul police patrol the city. Mendota Heights fights the fires. The city is part of Independent School District 197.

The woodsy hamlet, with a median household income of $148,410 in 1999, is home to numerous business executives, doctors and government leaders.

As appealing as Sunfish Lake is to its residents, the proliferation of such islands-unto-themselves could be detrimental to the larger metropolitan area, some say. "If you had lots of them, it might not be good for the metro area," said Myron Orfield, executive director of the Metropolitan Area Research Corp. in Minneapolis.

"If you live in Sunfish Lake, you can have all the benefits of metropolitan association and externalize the costs,'' Orfield said. "If it were in the middle of Montana, it wouldn't be wealthy. It's wealthy because it's connected to a major metro area."

Once Sunfish Lakes are created, Orfield said, "it's pretty difficult to do much of anything" unless they make specific demands on the metropolitan area. "When they want things, their behavior can be changed," Orfield said.

When Maple Grove several years ago requested a $100 million sewer interceptor, he noted, low-income-housing advocates succeeded in getting government-subsidized units built in the western metro suburb — something city leaders had previously resisted.

Metropolitan Council Commissioner John Conzemius, whose district includes Sunfish Lake, acknowledged that the suburb's plan of low-density residential homes flies in the face of regional planning goals.

"What we are striving for is to get higher densities so we can stop the urban sprawl," Conzemius said. "Unless they are willing to accept more, it's going to be awfully hard for us to do anything about it. There are a lot of communities now that don't want to take on higher densities, so we're going to be pushing (the metropolitan area]) out farther. It's really a tough situation."

Sunfish Lake residents, both mayors said, have made it clear that they do not want to make accommodations on housing. When philanthropist and Sunfish Lake resident Elizabeth Musser died in 2001, Park said, she deeded 22 acres to the city on the condition that the land remain untouched in perpetuity. Unless current landholders decide to subdivide large lots, Park said, the city has space for only 10 to 15 additional single-family homes.

Given that no major issues separated the candidates, how did Park, who has no experience on a city council or a planning commission, defeat Tiffany, a 10-year incumbent? The vote was 171-154.

Tiffany blames his defeat on residents who opposed Xcel Energy's plan to upgrade a power line that cuts through the city. After a judge ordered the city to grant Xcel a permit, Tiffany said, he considered the issue settled. But Tiffany believes that hard-core opponents wanted him to keep fighting and mobilized enough voters to oust him.

"I live across the lake from the power line," Tiffany said. "I'm not happy about the intrusion into the city, but I have no legal reason for denial of the permit."

Park agrees with Tiffany that it is futile for the city to continue opposing Xcel. "The city and Xcel have signed a contract," Park said. "The issue is done and over." But individual citizens, she said, could carry on their opposition.

Tiffany was more successful in battling other attempted incursions into Sunfish Lake's lifestyle. He furnished the Metropolitan Council with a spreadsheet showing that 100 percent of households passed septic-tank inspections in the last two years. Malfunctioning systems in other communities have been costly to taxpayers and the environment.

But once Tiffany showed that Sunfish Lake is not part of the septic-tank problem, "they backed off," Tiffany said.

Park said voters were simply "looking for a change" in mayor, not in the city's relationship — or lack thereof —with the larger metropolitan area.

Yet no matter how much Sunfish Lake tries to insulate itself, the outside world does intrude. Park thinks she is up to the next challenge, whatever it may be. Voters, she said, chose someone who pledged to maintain "what we cherish, but in a more diverse and complex world."