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Gov. Hochul and local officials mark next phase of major airport renovations in Rochester

Gov. Kathy Hochul was at the Frederick Douglass Greater Rochester International Airport on Friday, 6/28/24 to talk about the next phase of renovations at that facility.
Randy Gorbman
/
WXXI News
Gov. Kathy Hochul was at the Frederick Douglass Greater Rochester International Airport on Friday, 6/28/24 to talk about the next phase of renovations at that facility.

Governor Kathy Hochul and local leaders gathered at the Frederick Douglass Greater Rochester International Airport on Friday to announce a new phase of renovations.

Hochul came here to talk about construction beginning on a $38 million project which will modernize the entryway, ticketing and baggage claims areas of the main terminal. There will also be improvements to the heating and cooling system, the baggage belt and installing a new parking guidance system.

Hochul and other officials at Friday’s announcement talked about the importance of making airport improvements, since they are really a gateway to any community.

“It’s happened over 7 years ago, this was started,” said Hochul. “The entrance, the security checkpoint, the concessions. They're transformed forever. Someone who has not visited here in a number of years, their jaws will drop when they walk through those doors, they truly will. And that's the kind of experience you want people to have that sense of wonder like, wow, this is happening in Rochester.”

Monroe County Executive Adam Bello noted that in 2023, more than 2.6 million individuals travel through the Rochester airport.

“The $18 million in grant funding that was provided by New York state, this is a strategic investment that will improve customer experience,” said Bello. “It will save time and it will modernize our airport. And the increased use of our airport, it’s for economic growth, it gets attention by the airlines as well.”

Bello says a number of airlines have adde flights at the Rochester airport over the last year.

The local airport project is getting $18 million in state funding and nearly $17 million in federal funding.

The latest phase of renovations at the airport are expected to be completed by the summer of next year.

Randy Gorbman is WXXI's director of news and public affairs. Randy manages the day-to-day operations of WXXI News on radio, television, and online.