JFK's Terminal One Set For Long-Awaited $9.5B Revamp, Hochul Says

IJAMAICA, QUEENS — Governor Kathy Hochul announced a revised $9.5 billion revamp of John F. Kennedy International Airport's Terminal 1 on Monday, as the final part of a long-delayed airport overhaul.

The project, which will transform JFK's Terminal 1, 2, and 3 into a single, new, 2.4 million square foot state-of-the-art international terminal, is slated to be fully completed in 2030, with construction beginning in mid-2022 — two years after construction was initially supposed to begin.

Hochul's predecessor, Andrew Cuomo, first announced the New Terminal One plan in 2017, as part of his mission to upgrade the city's airports, including a complete overhaul of JFK. The project was slated to break ground in 2020, but was put on hold during the pandemic, when tourism — and airport revenue — plummeted.

In the past few months, however, projects to revamp JFK's Terminal 4 and 6 have moved forward, and as of Monday the New Terminal One plan is ready to move forward with Carlyle, JLC Infrastructure, and Ullico privately financing the project.

Getting the plan underway will mark the final phase of JFK's redevelopment, and is essential to the city's pandemic recovery, Hochul said on Monday.

"I want to ensure that everyone traveling to New York has a welcoming and streamlined experience and that New Yorkers have the modernized transportation hubs they deserve," she said.

Indeed, the New Terminal One will be designed with bright and airy check-in halls, indoor green spaces, and public art — much like the redesign of LaGuardia Airport's long-maligned main terminal.

The plan will also support the city's economic recovery from COVID, officials said on Monday, specifically noting that the project's 10,000 jobs will benefit communities in southeast Queens, where the airport is located.

Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, who is co-chair of the JFK Redevelopment Community Advisory Council alongside U.S. Rep. Gregory Meeks, said that the airport's redevelopment is an example of infrastructure and job investment in southeast Queens, which is often overlooked.

The Port Authority Board of Commissioners, who oversee the airport, will vote on the proposed agreement on Thursday, which is expected to pass; Port Authority executive director, Rick Cotton, said that his agency is "committed to rebuilding and transforming our airports into the world-class facilities the region deserves."

After news of the airport plan was announced at a news conference, Hochul took questions from the press, but the inquiries largely centered around the governor's indoor mask mandate, which went into effect on Monday.