Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval stars in new railroad sale campaign commercial

Cincinnati Mayor Pureval wants voters to approve the sale of the Cincinnati Southern Railway in November's election.

In fact, he's the face of the campaign in a new commercial urging people to vote yes. The ad is paid for by Building Cincinnati's Future, the political action committee championing the sale and funded at least in part by the proposed railroad buyer, Norfolk Southern Corp.

The commercial is reminiscent of 2015 when Mayor John Cranley starred in a campaign commercial for a Cincinnati parks levy, which ultimately failed. The commercial featured Cranley playing football, basketball and baseball.

What Pureval's ad presence means

The rail sale could benefit from Pureval's popularity. He won mayor in 2021 with 66% of the vote.

But it comes with risks too. Cranley's commercial was widely panned as cringy for all the roles Cranley played as he spoke about the benefits of the sale. In his ad, Pureval dressed in a blue button-down and slacks, much as he does around City Hall, just without the suit jacket.

What does the ad say?

He calls the Cincinnati Southern Railway "an old freight railway" in a dismissive tone. The railroad was completed 143 years ago and, while old, it has always been seen as a valuable asset that has provided income to the city budget.

The ad is called "Every Neighborhood," perhaps a nod to Councilman Scotty Johnson's concerns that the city's least wealthy neighborhoods wouldn't see improvements from any of the proceeds.

It starts with Pureval introducing himself, and while the text overlay says "Mayor Aftab Pureval" he says only his name, without the title.

Then Pureval says:

"Cincinnati has a backlog of $400 million of needed repairs to city infrastructure. By selling this old freight railway we will have the money to fix that; upgrade outdated fire stations to save lives; fix city roads and improve parks and playgrounds. We can build Cincinnati’s future; attract jobs and deliver for every neighborhood. Vote yes."

What to know about the vote

The board that oversees the city-owned Cincinnati Southern Railway wants to sell it to Norfolk Southern Corp., rather than continuing to lease it to the same company. The $1.6 billion in sale proceeds would then be used to create a trust and investment money from the trust would be used to repair current infrastructure.

The deal requires voter approval in November.

Several documents show the city does have $400 million in deferred maintenance needs. This is the first mention of playgrounds being funded with the money.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Hear what Aftab Pureval says in new railroad sale campaign commercial