Business owners, elected officials and community leaders gathered to celebrate the completion and ribbon-cutting of the $125 million redevelopment of John F. Kennedy International Airport’s Terminal 8 Tuesday.

What You Need To Know

Business owners, elected officials and community leaders gathered to celebrate the completion and ribbon-cutting of the $125 million redevelopment of John F. Kennedy International Airport’s Terminal 8 Tuesday

The commercial modernization of Terminal 8 is part of a multi-year, $19 billion overhaul of JFK. It includes 60 new concessions with plenty of dining and retail options — many of them local businesses with strong ties to the community

Developed in partnership with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, American Airlines and international airport operator ASUR Airports, the new and improved terminal also includes “The Boroughs Foodhall,” featuring local New York-area eateries

“And we’re here this morning to cut the ribbon on Terminal 8, which is really the first project at JFK that is completed,” Kathryn Garcia, the executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, said. “This is a huge milestone in our steps toward the vision of JFK.”

The commercial modernization of Terminal 8 is part of a multi-year, $19 billion overhaul of JFK. It includes 60 new concessions with plenty of dining and retail options — many of them local businesses with strong ties to the community.

“I am one of the owners of Bklyn Blend. Black owned minority owned juice bar, cafe and eatery,” Keishon Warren, co-owner of Bklyn Blend, said. “[It’s] just surreal to me and my family to have our name in such a dynamic airport. This same airport we came to as immigrants.”

Developed in partnership with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, American Airlines and international airport operator ASUR Airports, the new and improved terminal also includes “The Boroughs Foodhall,” featuring local New York-area eateries.

“We get to award our community with opportunities that they would not necessarily have,” Queens Borough President Donovan Richards said. “I always say, your zip code and socioeconomic status shouldn’t be a determinant of if you have access to a good-paying job in your neighborhood.”

Neir’s Tavern owner Loycent Gordon said having a concession for his business in Terminal 8 is going to help him remain in business for years to come.

“I own the oldest continuously operating tavern in New York City,” Gordon said. “It’s located in Woodhaven. I’ve owned it for 16 years. I saved it from closure, and now we are reimagining what that’s like going forward to get to 200 years in 2029.”

Other development projects underway at JFK include the New Terminal 1, which has several more years before it is complete, as well as Terminal 6, which is expected to be completed by the end of this year.

And the Port Authority said the expansion of Terminal 4 is now substantially complete.

The agency also said the goal of the Terminal 8 project was to elevate the passenger experience and generate economic development in the local community.