Norwood Park Township in general, and Norridge and Harwood Heights in particular, have long been politically renowned as the "Land of Milk and Honey."

That moniker, say detractors, is appropriate because nowhere in the Cook County suburbs are so many public officials paid so much to do so little.

But Harwood Heights, a village of 8,297 people which once paid its mayor an astounding $70,000 annually, has seceded, and is now the "Land of Megalomania and Pettiness." A group of "reformers" elected as village trustees in 1999 proceeded to halve the mayor's salary, and the current majority on the village board -- dubbed the "Gang of Four" -- are still doing the utterly unthinkable: They cut the salaries of a number of village officials, including the police chief. That prompted Mayor Norb Pabich to file a lawsuit against the trustees, alleging that they lacked the requisite authority.

This unprecedented fit of fiscal restraint, however, was not motivated by an urge to save tax dollars. Instead, it was purely political, as the leader of the "Gang of Four," Trustee Marge Fuller, is eager to run for mayor against Pabich in 2005.

It will be remembered that another nearby suburb was rocked with governmental bickering and gridlock during the late 1980s and early 1990s: The "Lincolnwood Loonies" brought much discredit on themselves and embarrassment to their village. Now it's Harwood Heights' turn.

Both Lincolnwood and Harwood Heights had stable, uncontroversial governments for decades before entering into their loony period. Henry Proesel was Lincolnwood's mayor from 1931 to 1977, and John Porcelli was mayor from 1977 to 1985. Porcelli was running unopposed for re-election in 1985, but he then abruptly quit and was replaced on the ballot by Frank Chulay, an adept administrator but an inept politician. Chaos ensued, as years of pent-up ambition surfaced and as outside politicians meddled in Lincolnwood's affairs. Chulay was barely re-elected in 1989, but by then village trustee meetings had become a battleground and Chulay became powerless, as the anti-Chulay majority methodically blocked his every move. After 8 years, Lincolnwood returned to norm and elected Madeleine Grant as mayor, resoundingly rejecting the candidacies of both Chulay and his chief tormenter, Trustee Lydia Cohan.

In Harwood Heights, Ray Willas was the undisputed boss for three decades, having been first elected mayor in 1973 and routinely winning re-election unopposed. He retired in 2001, after "reformers," led by Fuller and Don McCormick, won three of the six trustee positions in 1999. Prior to that year, Willas' salary aggregated to $70,000 annually, including $34,000 as mayor, $18,400 as liquor commissioner and $17,600 as village budget officer. That's not bad compensation to run a 1-square-mile village containing 8,297 people.

The so-called reformers, after they won, slashed Willas' salary and cut their own stipend for part-time service from $15,000to $12,000. By 2001, after having accumulated a $4 million surplus in the village's general fund and a $2 million surplus in the water fund, and fully expecting to spend at least $1 million of that on a new village hall, Willas did a political reality check: His control of the village board was history, at least two trustees were planning to run against him for mayor, and his income wasn't what it used to be. So he retired and endorsed Village Clerk George Alex to succeed him.

After 2 years of bickering and gridlock, the 2001 election was boisterous, bruising and a total repudiation of both Willas and the reformers. In a turnout of 1,924, Alex finished last with just 281 votes, with McCormick second  with 529 votes, Trustee Mike McGough third with 515 votes, and the upset winner being former trustee Pabich with 599 votes. Pabich had lost his trustee's post in 1999, but, because he wasn't part of the "War on Willas" and because voters were weary of the fighting, they picked the outsider. That's exactly what happened in Lincolnwood in 1993.

But Pabich's political honeymoon was short-lived. The 2003 municipal election brought in an anti-Pabich majority. Alex staged a comeback and won a trustee's spot, along with Mark Dobrzycki, and Fuller was re-elected. They then joined with Trustee Mary Duffy to create their "Gang of Four." The other two trustees were Arlene Jezierny and Larry Bilek. Although candidates run on tickets such as the Unity Party and the Vision Party, rather than as Democrat or Republican, it is common knowledge that Fuller, Alex and the rest of the "Gang of Four" are Democrats with close ties to Township Democratic Committeeman Robert Martwick, while Jezierny, Bilek and Pabich are independent. Bilek resigned in October 2003, and he has not yet been replaced.

Here's a summary of some of the more notable "Harwood Heights High Jinks" of the past several years:

* Where's my second? Under municipal code, the mayor has the power to name a replacement for any trustee vacancy. Pabich has repeatedly tried to do so. He has his ally, Jezierny, nominate a candidate, but board rules require a second on any motion for new business. None of the "Gang of Four" will provide that second, so Bilek's seat stays vacant -- and the "Gang "proclaims that the village is saving money by not having a sixth (pro-Pabich) trustee.

* Love those lawyers. After proceeding to strip Pabich of power over personnel and financial decisions, the "Gang of Four" went on a spending spree. They hired Mathias Delort as their "legislative counsel," gave him an annual retainer of $20,000, allow him to bill additional hours, and rely on him to draft all those village ordinances which emasculate Pabich. In addition, the village has another law firm on retainer to handle local ordinance prosecutions and other legal work. The total yearly legal tab: $102,600.

* Looking for a police chief. When Pabich took office, the police chief retired. The chief was then immediately rehired, however, as director of public safety. This ruse was required, since the chief could not collect his retirement pension as chief if he was still the chief, but he could do so if he was the director. The director's contract expired on May 31, and Pabich is empowered by state statute to appoint a replacement. So how did the "Gang of Four" foil Pabich? They reduced the salary of chief to $38,485 and that of director to $38,440 -- a level only several thousand dollars higher than that of village patrolman, and lower than that budgeted for the chief's secretary, who is paid $45,000. Who will take a job of major responsibility at such an insultingly low salary?

* Let's forget about it. Alex is the proverbial bull in the china shop. In 1999, after being appointed as village treasurer by Willas, Alex was unanimously censured by the board for "reprehensible acts" and "false accusations" against a village worker. Alex also was the subject of a police report in March of 2003 after he allegedly screamed obscenities at Jezierny. In May of 2003, Alex was accused by a village employee of rummaging through her desk drawers, and the employee was later fired. And then there's the issue of Alex's two-flat building, which had an illegal unit in the basement. The village's code enforcement officer, Ed Davis, cited Alex for the violation. After the "Gang of Four" took control, Davis's salary was chopped from $40,000 to $6,000.

Harwood Heights, with an annual budget of $9.7 million, and with 63 employees and 44 appointees, has been undergoing major demographic change in the past decade, with a huge influx of non-citizen Poles; they now comprise more than 40 percent of the population. The village is split by Harlem Avenue, with the bulk of the residential population in the area bordered by Harlem, Narragansett, Forest Preserve Drive and Gunnison; the mixed residential/industrial area north of Wilson to Foster, west of Harlem, is expected to experience major condominium development in the near future.

According to village insiders, the game plan of the "Gang of Four" is to run Fuller for mayor in 2005. Then, after beating Pabich, she'll run for state representative from the 20th District in 2006 as a Democrat, and after getting elected, she'll hand the mayor's post to Alex. Of course, a lot depends on who wins the 2004 House race between Republican Mike McAuliffe and Democrat Ralph Capparelli. If McAuliffe wins, Fuller would have a clear shot at the Democratic nomination, but he would be unlikely to beat McAuliffe in the election. If Capparelli prevails and then retires in 2006, Fuller would be in a very good position to replace him.

Fuller's pursuit of power has won her both a loyal following and a legion of enemies in Harwood Heights. Her 2005 strategy is problemantic: She can't criticize Pabich as inept, since the "Gang of Four" has made him powerless. She can't run as a reformer, since she is now an insider and has vested all power with the trustees. And, if she becomes mayor, she'll have to have the board give her back the power that she's already stripped away.

The "Harwood Heights High Jinks" are not common knowledge outside the village, but they are noted by residents. Pabich is not an inept politician, and he's now in a position to run to "reform" the abuses of the "Gang of Four" and to promise competent government if he and his slate of three trustees win. But if that happens, his opponents would be reduced to the "Gang of Three," as the terms of Fuller, Alex and Dobrzycki run through 2007, but normalcy would ensue, as Pabich would have the tie-breaking vote.

But the odds are that megalomania and pettiness will not soon disappear from Harwood Heights.