A total of $28 million is currently underway at the Watertown airport for a handful of projects. The terminal building and waiting area will be expanded and modernized, a new jet bridge will be installed to take passengers directly from the terminal to the aircraft, and a baggage claim will be added. Hochul said this is the largest single investment the airport has made since 1928, when it opened as the City of Watertown’s regional airport.

Hochul spoke at length about the military use of the airport and how it serves as a central point of contact to transport Fort Drum soldiers to and from other parts of the country. Additionally, it is often the first thing a new 10th Mountain Division soldier in the region sees when they first station in Drum.

“In the middle of winter, it’s not uncommon for a soldier to come back through Fort Drum, be greeted by their spouse and a child, and try to bundle up in the winter to go home, wherever they are if they don’t live here,” Hochul said. “The reason they’re bundled up and freezing is because they’re trying to board a plane outside, right?”

Hochul said the construction of a new jetway will change that – not just for the soldiers who use Watertown Airport, but for everyone.

Hochul said she would also like to see an expansion of the airport’s destination offerings – currently, the airport has two commercial departures and arrivals per day to and from Philadelphia.

“Great city, but we don’t need to go there every day,” she said. “I need people from elsewhere to be able to come and go from here. That way you get a catalyst that brings people here who want to vacation but don’t want to make the long drive, or someone who wants to open a business here.”

Hochul said the Watertown project is on schedule to be completed by next summer, and Therese-Dominguez is determined to meet that timeline.

Meanwhile, projects at Ogdensburg Airport began a few months ago, including a new landing lighting system and $18 million in grant-funded work on the terminals, and are expected to be completed by spring.

In Franklin County, the Adirondack Regional Airport is spending $8.5 million on a terminal expansion that is expected to be completed by winter next year.

All three measures are expected to boost economic development in the region and help local leaders and businesses capitalize on the tourism economy in the north of the country.

In response to questions from reporters after Tuesday’s event, Hochul said she is committed to helping all types of businesses get a foothold in the area. In Watertown, she said she has heard of a proposal to build a $92 million event center, but Empire State Development, the state agency that funnels state money into major projects like the event center, has not received any requests for state assistance for that project. There is a gap of about $20 million between the project’s secured funding and what is needed.

“They should submit it, they should put it together, and our teams will help them understand everything that is required,” she said. “If we are going to spend taxpayer money, we need to make sure it is a smart investment.”

And as for Convalt Energy’s solar panel manufacturing project slated for the Hounsfield Industrial Park, just outside Watertown International Airport, Hochul said she has scheduled a phone call about the project later this week.

“We are aggressively pursuing every opportunity,” she said. “We know how difficult it is to recruit in some parts of our state, more so than others. This area has so much to offer, we just need to get the word out.”

Hochul spent most of Tuesday traveling across the northern part of the country. She began her day with an early morning visit to the Canton Volunteer Fire Department in St. Lawrence County and thanked first responders for their hard work and dedication in combating the devastation left by Storm Debby over the weekend.

Following her visit to the airport, she toured downtown Watertown, enjoyed a meal at Crystal Restaurant with Rep. Scott A. Gray (R-Watertown), and visited Fort Drum.