Rick Cotton, executive director of the Port Authority, retiring in January

Port Authority executive director Rick Cotton announced Monday he will retire from the agency in January.

Cotton has served as the head of the Port Authority since August 2017, making him the longest-tenured leader of the agency since the 1940s.

A successor has not yet been named.

In a statement, Cotton said: "Since 2017, I have devoted all my energy to this profoundly important work. It has been enormously rewarding — and exhausting. But nothing is forever. With the immense progress that we have made and the completion last week of our proposed new 10-year capital plan — which will fund the agency’s ambitious agenda through 2035 — it is simply time to hand over the reins, and I will do so in January."

The Port Authority said Cotton and chairman Kevin O'Toole have delivered "an unprecedented wave of renewal and institutional reform," navigating everything from the COVID-19 pandemic to the $50 billion transformation of the region’s airports. Those included a major reimagining of LaGuardia Airport, the launch of a "full rebuild" of Kennedy Airport and a transformation of Terminal A at Newark Liberty International Airport.

The Port Authority also oversees certain bridges and tunnels, bus terminals, E-ZPass operation, PATH trains, shipping in the Port of New York and New Jersey, and the World Trade Center.

In a statement Monday, Gov. Kathy Hochul said: "Rick took on one of the toughest public-service jobs in America and delivered extraordinary results. LaGuardia’s transformation alone would define a career, but Rick’s impact spans airports, transit systems, bridges, and tunnels, as well as the renewed culture of a more accountable Port Authority."

"His leadership rebuilt public confidence in our capacity to deliver world-class infrastructure," Hochul added. "The Port Authority today is stronger and more resilient than ever, and his impact will be felt for generations."

A Harvard University graduate who earned his law degree from Yale, Cotton was appointed to the position on Aug. 14, 2017, by then-Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo. Previously, he had worked as special counselor to the governor for interagency initiatives, having also spent 25 years at NBCUniversal — including 20 years as executive vice president and general counsel.

By John Valenti

john.valenti@newsday.com

John Valenti, a Newsday reporter since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press, Society of the Silurians and National Headliner Awards for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing. He is the author of “Swee'pea,” about New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. His debut crime novel, “For Nothing Is Hidden,” rooted in 1950s Long Island, was released in October 2025.