Kathryn Garcia Likely to Succeed Rick Cotton as Port Authority Head
The former New York City sanitation commissioner is a top aide to Gov. Kathy Hochul
By Mark Hallum December 9, 2025 5:21 pm
reprints
Kathryn Garcia, a top aide to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and former candidate for New York City mayor, has been tapped to lead the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ), according to reports.
The formal announcement of Garcia’s appointment to succeed Rick Cotton as executive director of the bi-state agency has not been made, but sources told The New York Times that Hochul has selected her trusted adviser.
The New York governor appoints the executive director of the PANYNJ, while the governor of New Jersey selects the chairperson, which is currently Kevin O’Toole.
PANYNJ did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Garcia was a frontrunner for mayor in the 2021 election, losing the Democratic primary that year to outgoing Mayor Eric Adams, and before that was New York City Department of Sanitation commissioner under then-Mayor Bill de Blasio.
“There really isn’t anything Kathryn Garcia can’t do! That includes stepping into one of the most pivotal roles in the nation as the next head of the Port Authority,” New York Building Congress president Carlo Scissura said in a statement. “Their upcoming capital plan is ambitious, but achievable, and the governor chose wisely to put the experienced hand of Kathryn Garcia in charge of it. She’s proven her leadership time and time again, and her history of partnership with our industry will be one of her biggest strengths walking in the door.”
Cotton, who was appointed in 2017, announced in late November that he would retire by the beginning of 2026. He was the agency’s longest-serving executive director since Austin Tobin, who served from 1942 until 1972.
While Cotton has transformed John F. Kennedy, Laguardia and Newark airports, along with significant milestones in the redevelopment of the World Trade Center, he leaves behind a bit of a to-do list.
This includes the $10 billion, retail-centric redevelopment of the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown, which hasn’t seen a revival in over 70 years.
Mark Hallum can be reached at mhallum@commercialobserver.com.
