The mayor of Newark told the City Council that the city has received a designation connected to the American 250 Ohio Buckeye train and described a special train event planned for April 2026 that will include Newark as a stop.

The mayor said the designation and the planned train rides are the product of years of work with railroad partners and local development efforts, and that the train will bring tourists to experience Newark's historic and experiential downtown sites. "What this train will do is... it'll put Newark on the map in a couple of ways," the mayor said, describing an 8 a.m. departure from Newark with a stop in Coshocton and a layover at Denison Depot with activities, music and storytelling during the stop.

The mayor credited Director Madder, Wendy Zukul, Denison officials and "hundreds of folks" and local development partners for the recognition. The mayor said the first train event will occur in April 2026 (transcript phrasing: "April 20 sixth of 20 26"); the meeting transcript includes an 8 a.m. Newark departure time and a multi-hour layover in Denison, and describes two additional similar opportunities planned.

Council members and staff acknowledged the recognition and said the designation and events are expected to support tourism. The transcript does not include an agreement, contract, or specific city expenditures tied to the train stop; no formal council action was taken on this item during the meeting.

What happens next: the mayor said marketing and partner coordination will be part of ongoing preparations; the transcript does not list assigned staff tasks, funding amounts, or formal agreements.