Arthur J. Katzman (1903 – 1993) was an American politician and attorney who served as a member of the New York City Council representing the 29th district, which includes Forest Hills,

Rego Park Rego Park is a neighborhood in the borough of Queens in New York City. Rego Park is bordered to the north by Elmhurst and Corona, to the east and south by Forest Hills, and to the west by Middle Village. Rego Park's boundaries include Qu ...

Kew Gardens Kew Gardens is a botanical garden, botanic garden in southwest London that houses the "largest and most diverse botany, botanical and mycology, mycological collections in the world". Founded in 1840, from the exotic garden at Kew Park, its li ...

and parts of

Maspeth Maspeth is a residential and commercial community in the borough of Queens in New York City. It was founded in the early 17th century by Dutch and English settlers. Neighborhoods sharing borders with Maspeth are Woodside to the north; Sunnyside t ...

, Richmond Hill and

Elmhurst Elmhurst may refer to: Places Australia *Elmhurst, Victoria United Kingdom * Elmhurst, Aylesbury *Elmhurst, Staffordshire United States *Elmhurst, Sacramento, California *Elmhurst, Oakland, California *Elmhurst, Delaware *Elmhurst, Illinois *Elmhu ...

Early life and education

Katzman was born on September 21, 1903, in

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...

and emigrated to the United States with his family when he was five. Their first home in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

was in

Brownsville, Brooklyn Brownsville is a residential neighborhood in eastern Brooklyn in New York City. The neighborhood is generally bordered by Crown Heights to the northwest; Bedford–Stuyvesant and Cypress Hills to the north; East New York to the east; Canarsi ...

. Katzman graduated from

Brooklyn Law School Brooklyn Law School (BLS) is a private law school in New York City. Founded in 1901, it has approximately 1,100 students. Brooklyn Law School's faculty includes 60 full-time faculty, 15 emeriti faculty, and a number of adjunct faculty. Brookly ...

Career

After graduating from law school, Katzman established a law practice in Forest Hills, Queens. Katzman served as a member of the New York City Council from 1962 until his retirement in 1991. Katzman ran as an insurgent

Reform Democrat Reform Democrats in the United States are members of the Democratic Party who are opposed to the Democratic political machines of their respective cities, counties, or states or to analogous machine politics at a national level. Reform Democrats ar ...

against incumbent George J. Schneider. Among his first achievements in office was legislation that provided funding for Yellowstone Municipal Park, a playground that was later named after Katzman. At the time of his retirement, he was the oldest serving member of the City Council.

Death

He died on August 29, 1993, at his daughter's home in

Mountain View, California Mountain View is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States. Named for its views of the Santa Cruz Mountains, it has a population of 82,376. Mountain View was integral to the early history and growth of Silicon Valley, and is th ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Katzman, Arthur New York City Council members Brooklyn Law School alumni Jewish American people in New York (state) politics 1903 births 1993 deaths 20th-century American politicians People from Brownsville, Brooklyn Politicians from Brooklyn 20th-century American Jews