The following is attributable to Tom Wright, President and CEO of RPA:

RPA congratulates Rick Cotton on his retirement after more than 8 highly successful years at the helm of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, working in partnership with Chairman Kevin O’Toole, and applauds the appointments of Kathryn Garcia as Executive Director and Jean Roehrenbeck as Deputy Executive Director of the PANYNJ, said Tom Wright, President and CEO of Regional Plan Association. Kathryn Garcia has been at the forefront of infrastructure and transportation for New York for over five years, and Jean Roehrenbeck is a seasoned transportation administrator with experience managing significant capital investments.

The past 8 years have shown how critical it is for the Port Authority to have a unified institutional structure with input and direction from both Governors. The Port Authority is unique in our region, being the only public authority with the express mission of investing in and maintaining regional infrastructure systems – the airports, seaports, transit and Hudson River crossings that connect New York and New Jersey. Kathryn Garcia and Jean Roehrenbeck’s combined experience will be critical as they work to advance regionally significant projects including building a new world-class bus terminal and continuing the transformation of JFK and Newark airports. As the recent attacks on the Gateway Program have shown, leadership and partnership between Governors Kathy Hochul and Mikie Sherrill will be crucial too. We are very pleased to see them working together to build stronger connections between these states.