Virtual Celebration To Honor Late Queens BP Claire Shulman

QUEENS, NY — The Queens Borough President's Office will host a virtual celebration this week to pay tribute to the life and legacy of former Queens Borough President Claire Shulman, who died on Aug. 16 at the age of 94.

The celebration, hosted by Acting Queens Borough President Sharon Lee and Schneps Media, will air at 6 p.m. Thursday on Queens Public Television.

Shulman served as borough president from 1986 to 2002 and was the first woman to hold the position.

During her tenure, she oversaw the rezoning of neighborhoods across the borough, from Long Island City to Jamaica, to generate development and economic activity, as well as the completion of Queens Hospital Center.

Shulman died at her home in Beechhurst. The cause was lung cancer, one of her longtime friends told The New York Times.

"In a borough known for its trailblazers, few have led a life of dedicated public service as robust and as effective as Claire Shulman," Lee said. "She transformed the landscape of the City's largest borough, and so much of what we see and enjoy today are the results of her extraordinary vision and decisions made over 18 years ago."