Port Authority Moves Forward with Airports Study

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey agreed to move forward with a study Thursday that will look at capacity and future usage demands at John F. Kennedy International, Newark Liberty International, Stewart International, LaGuardia and Teterboro airports.

The Port Authority’s Board of Commissioners announced that the Cincinnati, Ohio-based firm of Landrum & Brown Inc., will be hired to identify changes that are needed to meet future air travel demands.  

The airports  are responsible for generating 500,000 jobs and $62 billion in economic activity, according to Port Authority officials. If current airport facilities aren’t expanded or new facilities aren’t built, offficials estimate that 20 million air travelers will not be served by the regional air system by 2030. This will result in delays, congestion and the loss of 86,000 potential jobs, officials said.

The board also took the following actions Thursday:

• Authorized $1.5 million for planning associated with the construction of a foam arrestor bed for Runway 11 at Newark Liberty International Airport.  The project is expected to generate 60 jobs and $14 million in economic activity.
• Authorized $2.5 million in planning for the rehabilitation of Runway 9-27 and Runway 16-34 at Stewart International Airport to maintain them in a state of good repair.  The project is expected to generate 870 jobs and $221 million in economic activity.
• Authorized $10.5 million in planning for Stage 1 design for a new PATH substation to replace the existing PATH substation No. 2 that is now located in the Washington Street Powerhouse in Jersey City, NJ.  The project is expected to generate 790 jobs and $222 million in economic activity.
• Authorized $2.25 million in planning for the rehabilitation of the Palisades Interstate Parkway Helix approach at the George Washington Bridge.  The project is expected to generate 200 jobs and $61 million in economic activity.
• Authorized a supplemental agreement with Bombardier Transportation USA Inc., to rehabilitate the 13.2kV electrical feeder system for AirTrain Newark Northeast Corridor Extension.
• Authorized a new 12-year lease with Harbor Freight Transport Corp. for the lease of Building 301 consisting of warehouse space and open area and approximately 6.5 acres of adjacent open area at Port Newark  for the operation of a cargo storage and distribution facility.
• Authorized the Executive Director to enter into agreements with the Federal Aviation Administration to reimburse the FAA for its expenses associated with work performed on the Port Authority’s behalf  in connection with capital and operating project’s at the Port Authority’s five airports.
• Authorized, through its Committee on Operations, an agreement with Raritan Baykeeper Inc., that provides for the Port Authority to fund the purchase of approximately 4.7 acres of property known as the McNamee Property in Hazlet Township, NJ.  Money for the property acquisition comes from the  New York – New Jersey Harbor Estuary Program, set by the Board in 2001, which allots funds for New Jersey and New York for the acquisition of sites in the Estuary identified by staff as suitable for conservation, ecological enhancement, public access, or environmental mitigation.
• Authorized the declaration of the PATH-owned portion of the Washington Street Powerhouse in Jersey City, which houses PATH’s Substation No. 2, as surplus property; the conveyance of the PATH-owned portion of the Powerhouse to Jersey City and/or the Jersey City redevelopment Agency in exchange for approximately 22,368 square feet of adjacent vacant land on which a new PATH substation will be built.
• Authorized the award of a construction trade contract with Padilla Construction Services Inc. for construction of the plaza for the World Trade Center Transportation Hub project.
• Authorized the award of a construction trade contract with Five Star Electric Corporation  for an electrical system for the World Trade Center Retail and Parking Pre-Tenant Fit-Out projects.
• Authorized the award of a construction trade contract with Navillus Tile Inc., doing business as Navillus Contracting, for masonry for the World Trade Center Retail and Parking Pre-Tenant Fit-Out projects.
• Authorized the award of a construction trade contract  with Schindler Elevator Corporation for vertical transportation for the World Trade Center Retail and Parking Pre-Tenant Fit-Out projects.
• Authorized a supplemental agreement with Tutor Perini Corporation to perform additional construction improvements  in the Greenwich Street Corridor on behalf of Port Authority projects and other stakeholders.