Port Authority Public Meetings on Proposed $32.2 Billion 10-Year Capital Plan to Begin Next Week
The Port Authority will host the first of two public meetings on its largest ever $32.2 billion proposed 2017-2026 Capital Plan on Tuesday, January 31, from 5-8 pm, at 4 World Trade Center.
The meeting, will be attended by Board commissioners as well as the executive director and chief financial officer. A second meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 7, from 5-8 pm, at Port Authority offices, 2 Montgomery Street in Jersey City.
To speak at either of the two meetings, members of the public can register in advance at the Port Authority website. Registrations also will be available at the door beginning at 4:30 pm on both dates.
The meetings are just one component of the Port Authority’s month-long public review and comment period on the proposed 10-year plan. The plan is posted on the Port Authority’s web site and comments on the document can be submitted through February 15 by emailing publiccomments(at)panynj.gov. The Board is scheduled to take action on the plan at its February 16 meeting. Prior to that action, the Board will consider public comments received in order to determine if any modifications to the draft plan are warranted.
The proposed plan outlines new major capital projects the agency will invest in over the next 10 years. All projects remain subject to Board authorization processes, and are subject to a rigorous “gates” review process before they proceed that looks at agency revenue and the ability to finance them.
The significant projects include:
- A new Port Authority Bus Terminal
- The redevelopment of John F. Kennedy International Airport and a new AirTrain system to serve LaGuardia Airport
- The redevelopment of Terminal A at Newark Liberty International Airport
- The redevelopment of LaGuardia Airport’s Terminals C and D
- The extension of the PATH system to the rail link station at Newark Liberty International Airport
The proposed plan also includes $8.8 billion – or 30 percent of the total 10-year spending – for critical renewal projects at the agency’s transportation facilities, including nearly $2 billion to restore the George Washington Bridge, $1.4 billion to replace the Lincoln Tunnel Helix and $550 million to replace wharves and piers. The proposed Capital Plan also follows the Special Panel’s recommendation to redeploy $600 million in regional development funds previously allocated to both states.
The proposed Capital Plan includes a commitment to pay debt service on up to $2.7 billion of expected borrowing by the Gateway Program Development Corporation from low-interest federal Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing loans for the critical trans-Hudson rail tunnel link between New York and New Jersey and Portal Bridge North projects.
The plan also includes $7.6 billion to finish projects currently in construction, such as LaGuardia Airport’s ongoing Terminal B redevelopment project, the Bayonne Bridge, Goethals Bridge, PATH’s signal replacement program, upgrades to the Harrison and Grove Street PATH stations and the port and rail cargo facility at Greenville Yard.
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