Rick Cotton, Head of NY and NJ’s Port Authority, to Retire (1)

Rick Cotton, the executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, who oversaw major revitalization efforts and infrastructure developments across New York City and parts of New Jersey, will retire in January, the agency announced on Monday.

Cotton, who held the role longer than anyone has since the 1940s, led the charge on a new LaGuardia Airport, delivering a turnaround for an airport once considered among the country’s worst. He also guided one of the nation’s busiest ports through the Covid-19 pandemic, a time of great supply chain disruption and uncertainty.

Rick Cotton

Photographer: Lev Radin/Sipa/AP

“Working in ...