Politics is all about alliances. Governance is about relationships. There is a difference.
Alliances are tactical arrangements, based on need, not always on trust – rarely on personal friendships. Politics is often how we, in public service, land in a particular place. But what we do once there requires more than tactical alliances; it requires us to form deep bonds with the individuals who will work with us toward a common purpose.
Occasionally, in public life “the politics” and “the governance” align perfectly. Personalities that seemed incompatible on paper become transformative agents for change. If you allow me a reference to a popular film musical; we can be changed for good, and we can change the work of an organization for good.
Such is the case with my remarkable relationship, my partnership, and my friendship with Rick Cotton, who is retiring as the Executive Director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
We were asked to join the bi-state agency at the same time, in the summer of 2017. We did not know one another. Pundits at the time thought little of our ability to work effectively. They also thought little of the Port Authority’s ability to work effectively, as an agency.
The doomsayers underestimated the power of the Port Authority’s 8,000-person workforce. And they most definitely underestimated the power of Rick Cotton, a man of unequalled integrity, dedication to public service, and extraordinary intellect.
On Day One, Rick and I made a pledge to each other: There would be no daylight between us. We would come to consensus, put aside parochial interests, and we would focus on, first, restoring integrity to the Port Authority, second, ensuring that the workforce had the tools needed to deliver what the agency committed to, and third, delivering that and more.
Bureaucracies are notoriously inefficient, but they do not have to be. What is required is strong, dynamic leadership at the top. Rick has provided that steady hand during some unprecedented challenges. Neither he nor I could have envisioned that we would be faced with a global pandemic that would upend society – and also upend the Port Authority’s priorities.
During the pandemic, the Port of New York and New Jersey became one of the most vital links in the global supply chain. Cargo volumes not expected for a decade became the norm, and while other ports struggled with the load, the Port of New York and New Jersey did not. It’s a testament to the individuals working at our Seaport, but it is also a testament to how Rick manages crisis.
The list of what the Port Authority delivered these past eight-plus years is remarkable:
- A new globally acclaimed LaGuardia Airport.
- A new Terminal A at Newark Liberty International, groundbreaking on a new Newark AirTrain and on the NEC Station Access project that will connect the people of Newark and Elizabeth to AirTrain, Amtrak, and NJ Transit for the first time, and advancing the Newark Vision Plan which will include a new Terminal B.
- Delivering a new Goethals Bridge and raising the Bayonne Bridge.
- Delivering a new Harrison PATH station.
- Investing in needed track and signal replacements throughout PATH, as well as making the system more resilient to intense storms.
- Delivering the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and Perelman Performing Arts Center on the World Trade Center campus, bringing the site closer to completion, while transforming it into a vibrant 24/7 community campus.
- Restoring the George Washington Bridge, with all of its 592 suspender ropes now replaced.
- Announcing the landmark 33-year lease extension with APM terminals at the Port of New York and New Jersey, which includes significant investments in the seaport, now the second busiest for loaded cargo in the United States.
I could go on and on listing what was delivered under Rick’s leadership. But I save the best for last: the Port Authority’s historic $45 billion Capital Plan that will be voted on by the Board of Commissioners this week.
This plan will result in a new Midtown Bus Terminal, completion of a new $19 billion world-class aviation hub at John F. Kennedy International Airport with a major upgrade of the AirTrain JFK system; a transformed Newark Liberty International Airport anchored by a new best-in-class Terminal B, a new AirTrain Newark, and the further implementation of the EWR Vision Plan; a rebuilding of Terminal A at LaGuardia, the outdated passenger gates adjacent to the separate landmarked Marine Air Terminal building; and increased PATH service, including service on all four lines seven days a week, for the first time in 25 years!
Rick has laid the foundation for these accomplishments and much more. That’s what a true leader does – he strengthens what he inherits, he identifies what is good and makes it better, and he empowers the people around him to do what they do best.
The Port Authority under Rick Cotton’s leadership was not about ego; it was about achievement – collaborative achievement.
One of the first places that collaborative spirit took hold was among the individual commissioners who serve on the Port Authority’s Board of Commissioners. There are twelve of us – like a jury – but we do not need unanimous votes to approve an item on the agenda. But over these past eight-plus years, we have found unanimous agreement, not because we rubber stamp anything, but because we discuss, we listen, and like Rick, we never lose sight of our mission: to serve the people of this region.
The twelve of us come from two great states and bring different skillsets to the table. Vice Chairman Jeff Lynford, my right hand on the Board, brings both a New York sensibility and a bi-state pragmatism to our deliberations. Jeff also brings a historical perspective to the Board, and that is important. We need to understand the history of the agency’s actions so that we improve what is good and we do not repeat what was bad.
The Board of Commissioners working with Rick has followed Rick’s lead of forging alliances based on trust and respect – we work together for the good of the agency. None of us are passive. Rick would attest to that! But we are collegial. And like Rick, we remain focused on achieving all that is possible at any given moment in time. Rick expects no less from himself. The Board of Commissioners, as a whole, expects no less from each commissioner. And the public expects no less from our agency.
When Rick and I walked into the Port Authority in 2017, people were not talking about the great accomplishments the agency had delivered for almost 100 years. But that greatness was there. As the two of us met with the 8,000-person workforce, that greatness was apparent everywhere we went. The people of the Port Authority just needed leadership that empowered them to do what they always wanted to do – to deliver big, ambitious infrastructure projects.
They found that leader in Rick Cotton.
No one works harder than Rick. No one is prouder of the achievements of the 8,000 people who make the Port Authority what it is than Rick.
And I can say, no one is prouder and more honored than I am for having Rick Cotton as my partner at the Port Authority these past eight-plus years.
The Port Authority, at its best, is not about New York versus New Jersey; it is about New York and New Jersey combining their strengths to be an unparalleled force to build infrastructure, manage seaways and aviation, and move the greatest region in the world.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey was created to literally connect people and places. Rick Cotton did that, while also connecting the Port Authority to the public it serves. He built bridges, airports, and stations.
All of us – the people who served and worked with him, and the public that will reap the benefits of the infrastructure he built for generations to come – owe him an unending debt of gratitude. Rick’s impact on the Port Authority and the region is long-lasting.
The 2026-2035 Capital Plan has set the course for the next ten years. His personal credo that the Port Authority is obligated to build world-class facilities, while holding itself to the highest standards of integrity, has become a foundational principle of our bi-state agency. This is his legacy and his gift to the people who will follow him in leadership.
Rick Cotton has built alliances strengthened by integrity, intellect, and a genuine desire to serve the public.
Rick Cotton is all that.
He also is my friend.
Kevin J. O’Toole is the Chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
