by Rob MacKay
Woodside might be the future home of such famous individuals as actor Christopher Reeves, ex-Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia and baseball legend Jackie Robinson.
Flushing resident Albert D. Stern is trying to establish the one thing he says the Big Apple doesn’t have: a hall of fame. And he thinks it should be located as close as possible to the city’s exact geographic center, which lies in the vicinity of Queens Boulevard and 58th Street.
“This is the greatest city in the world and the people who live and work in it make it that way. They should be recognized,” an excited Stern told the Times Newsweekly. “In time this will become a major tourist attraction, a great source of pride and a positive influence on youngsters.”
The Brooklyn native, who has lived in every borough except Staten Island, got the idea while watching a Mets game in 2002. After hearing the announcers discuss the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in upstate Cooperstown, he wondered why his beloved Gotham didn’t have such a shrine.
“I already wanted to give something back to the community, and I immediately thought it would be a great idea,” he said.
Stern, 61, recently met with an architect with hopes of building a two-story, oval-shaped building with a main exhibit hall that shoots 50 feet high. As such, he and his board members are trying to raise $10 million.
The first induction ceremony will be held in spring of 2005, Stern said, even if the museum is not finished. His website, www.nychalloffame.org, accepts nominations in the following categories: architecture, business, charity, communications, culture, education, health, science, heroism, humanitarianism, sports, entertainment and volunteerism.
To be eligible, a potential inductee must have lived within city limits and done something to improve the city. Stern has not made a definite cut-off point, but he favors individuals who contributed after 1898, the year all five boroughs were incorporated into the City of New York.
City Council Member Eric Gioia, whose district includes Woodside, has already lent verbal support to the plan. Stern has also talked to Queens Borough President Helen Marshall and plans to make a presentation to Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
He’s working hard, but then again, Stern, a retired general manager of a photographic retail store, loves his hometown. On his website, he paraphrases President John F. Kennedy: “Consider not what New York City can do for you, but what you can do for New York City.”