Flushing Town Hall gala honors former boro prez
Shulman’s decades of public service will be recognized at organization’s 40th anniversary
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
Former Queens Borough
President Claire Shulman will
be honored for her leading
role in supporting the arts
at Flushing Town Hall’s 40th
Anniversary Gala in June.
The annual benefit
supports Flushing Town
Hall’s year-round arts and
cultural programs that serve
58,000 people annually, citywide,
of which over 22,000
are students, families and
seniors. The event will be
held June 6, beginning at 6
p.m. with cocktails and hors
d’oeuvres, followed by dinner,
awards and entertainment at
7 p.m. at 137-35 Northern Blvd
in Flushing.
“This annual event is an
opportunity to showcase the
value of culture and arts in our
community and throughout
the borough, and a chance to
come together and celebrate
remarkable honorees who
exemplify the importance
of supporting the arts,” said
Ellen Kodadek, Executive and
artistic director at Flushing
Town Hall.
Shulman, who served as
Queen’s first female borough
president from 1986 until 2002,
will be presented with the
first Jo-Ann Jones Award for
Devoted Leadership. Jo-Ann
Jones was the founder of the
Flushing Council on Culture
and the Arts.
As the highest-ranking
elected official in Queens,
Shulman focused on land
use, development of the city’s
expense and capital budgets,
economic development and
health care.
During her tenure,
Shulman was pivotal in
ensuring the development
and growth of a number of
Queens cultural institutions,
including Flushing Town Hall,
and shepherded the rezoning
of dozens of neighborhoods
to create appropriate zoning
restrictions, the economic
revitalization of communities,
including downtown Jamaica
and western Queens, expanded
the borough’s infrastructure,
Former Borough President Claire Shulman
and increased funding for
senior citizen centers, cultural
programs, and libraries.
Today, Shulman currently
serves as the President and
CEO of the Flushing Willets
Point Corona LDC, a nonprofit
that focuses on development
initiatives including the
creation of housing and
community open space,
opportunities for health and
wellness, and improvements
to infrastructure and mass
transit options.
“Flushing Town Hall is
very close to my heart. We
rescued it from the private
market and turned it into
a wonderful community
center,” said Shulman. “It is
very kind of Flushing Town
Hall to honor me in this way,
but the beauty of this facility
is a result of many people and
I would include them with me
in this wonderful honor.”
Flushing Town Hall will also
honor Emily Lin, principal of
Lin + Associates Architects, PC,
with its second annual Howard
Graf for Creative Design and
Architecture. The award is
named after longtime former
Board Chair Howard Graf.
Lin founded her practice in
1995 which includes a wide range
of condominium, residential,
commercial, institutional,
religious, retail, interior and
multi-use projects throughout
the Tri-State area. She and
her husband have developed
and managed multiple real
estate developments in
New York City.
Lin has served on the
boards of the American
Institute of Architects, Asian
American Business Women
Association, Garden of Hope,
Queens Botanical Garden,
and Queens Economic
Development Corporation, and
received numerous awards
and recognitions.
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