Fourth in a series. 

Re: “Corlin Aims, Fires at Useless (?) League” 

Sentiment be darned.

When he left Council Chambers for the final time as an elected official seven years ago this month, former City Councilman Alan Corlin recalled “the meeting went on forever.”

An advocate of term limits, the newlywed now residing in Long Beach said that “I left Council Chambers the same way I came.

“When I went to City Council, I didn’t have any preconceived notions.”

In retrospect, Mr. Corlin had packaged a heavyweight agenda. Listen.

“I did have some ideas of what I wanted to do. I needed to figure out how I was going to get it done. I needed to make allies, and I needed to figure out who was not going to be doing what I wanted.”

Never far from a smart rhetorical flair, Mr. Corlin said that Closing Night “was the last chapter of the book. In the beginning of the book, you find out what the characters are, you find out what the plot is, you determine what the story is.

“You follow the story. You get to the end, you get to the final chapter, you close the book.”

Did Mr. Corlin, a business owner for more than 40 years, entertain second thoughts? Regrets?

“I didn’t have one second thought,” he replied with characteristic firmness and certitude.”

For eight years, Mr. Corlin’s life was consumed, if not overwhelmed, by Council responsibilities.

“I didn’t have a spare weekend,” he said.

(To be continued)