ALBANY COUNTY — “The future has arrived,” said Governor Kathy Hochul on Thursday during an event at Albany County’s airport to announce a $100 million upgrade.

The project is to be completed in early 2025.

It is funded with $40 million from the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and American Rescue Plan and $60 million from the state through its latest round of the Upstate Airport Economic Development and Revitalization Competition. Altogether, $230 million was awarded to upstate airports from the state.

Entryways will be modernized, the security area will be relocated and expanded, and waiting areas will add more seating — all to reduce congestion and ease the flow of passengers.

The current rotunda and pedestrian bridge from the airport to parking will be removed and in its place a glass curtain wall will be built with translucent canopies.

Also, conference facilities will be updated and a public arts area and children’s play zone will be added as well as new green spaces and an expanded airside marketplace.

A 30-kilowatt solar array will be installed on the airport’s roof and light-emitting diodes will be used throughout the project area. Heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning systems will also be upgraded.

 “Ask anyone who has flown out of Albany International Airport during peak hours and they will tell you the line for security can often back up into the pedestrian walkway and even all the way to the parking garage,” said Senator Charles Schumer in a statement. “While the airport is vibrant and growing, it was built long before modern TSA security screening, and for years has been in desperate need of expansion.

“When I became majority leader, I promised to deliver the funding needed to grow the Albany Airport, cut the lines and reduce wait times, and I am proud to have secured over $40 million through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and American Rescue Plan to finally get this project off the ground.”

The state had earlier invested  $72.1 million in Albany International Airport, expanding the parking areas and creating Exit 3 off the Northway to reach the airport; that project was completed in 2020.

“Two and a half years from now when we celebrate the reopening of this airport, it’ll herald in a new era, an era based on the confidence of a region that matters,” Hochul told Thursday’s crowd, including many state and local municipal officials. “It’ll herald in an era where visitors and our residents alike will have that sense that they matter and that this region will really know it’s taking off.”

Hochul named many local cities — among them Albany, Schenectady, Troy, and Glens Falls — and said, during the pandemic, “people that were trying to escape the oppressive environment in New York City, which was the epicenter, the global epicenter, of the pandemic” found their way “up to our charming communities.”

“And we want to make sure they stay,” she said, noting that an upgraded airport would help.

Hochul predicted a “reverse migration” after years of people leaving upstate for New York City. “People [will be] coming here,” she said, “because the jobs are here, the quality of life is second to none.”

In addition to easing the way for travelers, Hochul said, “I also want to make sure these upgrades are good for our airline workers and our airport workers …. They worked through a pandemic. Our airport workers are extraordinary. And without them, this area grinds to a halt.”

Built in 1928, Albany’s airport is the oldest municipal airport in the nation, Hochul said. Albany’s mayor at the time, John Boyd Thacher, was ahead of his time, she said.

“He said, ‘Any city that does not accommodate this new air traffic would eventually be left behind.’ He was right about that. He had a vision that we’re still building upon today, and transportation is really tied to the success of a region.”