Patrick Foye, a Sands Point resident who served as the chairman and CEO of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority for more than four years, will not be serving as Empire State Development’s interim president and CEO, according to multiple reports.
Foye, who previously served as the head of Empire State Development under former Gov. Elliot Spitzer, was appointed to the position by former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in June. Last week, Foye told Gov. Kathy Hochul — who replaced Cuomo in August — that he would not be accepting the job, according to the Long Island Business News.
“As with any transition, the governor deserves an opportunity to build her own team, and to that end she is off to a very strong start,” Foye said in a written statement, according to Long Island Business News. “While I no longer seek to serve in the capacity originally envisioned, I pledge my support, service, and assistance to her and her administration.”
Hochul, a Democrat, took over for Cuomo after the ex-governor resigned in the wake of a damning report from state Attorney General Letitia James accusing him of sexually harassing 11 women.
Hochul’s press secretary, Hazel Crampton-Hays, expressed gratitude for Foye’s desire to help the state in other capacities in a statement.
“He has brought skill and professionalism to the complex challenges he was tasked with in his many roles, and we are grateful he has offered his expertise to help the state continue to move forward,” Crampton-Hays said in the statement according to Long Island Business News.
Efforts to reach Foye or a representative from the governor’s office for further comment were unavailing.
As head of the MTA, Foye oversaw North America’s largest transit agency and its response to the COVID-19 pandemic. He also led efforts to stabilize the MTA’s finances by securing over $14 billion in critically needed funding from Congress, developing a national coalition of transportation agencies that secured more than $32 billion in emergency federal funds for transit agencies across the country.
Prior to joining the MTA, Foye led the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey as executive director from November 2011 to August 2017, where he oversaw some of the nation’s most significant transactions, including the redevelopment of LaGuardia Airport and the building of a new Goethals Bridge as well as the development and adoption of the agency’s 10-year, $32.2 billion capital plan.
Foye also served as deputy secretary for Economic Development for Cuomo, and vice chair and board member of the Long Island Power Authority, following a career in law and real estate as a mergers and acquisition partner at Skadden Arps and executive vice president of Aimco, a leading multi-family real estate investment trust.
