The Ferguson Act required a board of five trustees to govern the Cincinnati Southern Railway.  Trustees are appointed by the Mayor of Cincinnati and are approved by Cincinnati City Council. 

The CSR bylaws mandate that political affiliations of the Board must be disclosed and that no more than three members of the same political party are permitted to serve on the Board.  Trustees serve five year terms and there are no term limits.  While trustees originally received compensation, today’s trustees are not paid for their service.

To learn more about the role of the Board of Trustees, please view the CSR bylaws.

Mark VanderLaan, Board President, Democrat
A board member since 1993, Mr. VanderLaan is a partner at the law firm of Dinsmore & Shohl LLP, where he chairs the firm’s Litigation Department.  Mr. VanderLaan’s practice focuses on litigation involving business matters, contracts, fraud, securities, and civil and criminal fiduciary issues.  Mr. VanderLaan earned his law degree from the University of Michigan Law School and his B.A. from Hope College.

Thomas B. McOwen, Sr., Board Secretary, Republican
Mr. McOwen has served as a Board Trustee since 2005. He has years of experience in the rail industry, including his roles as the founder and later president of the Indiana & Ohio Railroad, which was sold to Railtex (now RailAmerica) in 1996. Mr. McOwen has served for over 10 years as a commissioner on the Ohio Rail Development Commission, the state agency that oversees railroads in Ohio. He is now acting chairman of the Ohio Rail Development Commission. Mr. McOwen is also a member of the freight committee of OKI.

Paul Sylvester, Board Treasurer, Democrat
Mr. Sylvester has served as a Board Trustee since 1984.  Mr. Sylvester is a CPA licensed in the State of Ohio.  Mr. Sylvester has ten years of public accounting experience with Coopers & Lybrand in Cincinnati, Ohio, in addition to his twenty years of experience in Chief Financial Officer and Treasury functions in three privately-owned construction or construction supply companies.  Mr. Sylvester earned his MBA at the University of Cincinnati and his B.S./B.A. at The Ohio State University. 

Thomas Kilcoyne, Board Trustee, Republican
Mr. Kilcoyne has served as a Board Trustee since 2000.  Mr. Kilcoyne is an attorney with Cors & Bassett LLC, where he focuses primarily on general corporate law, property tax relief, estate planning, and probate matters.  Mr. Kilcoyne earned his law degree at the University of Cincinnati College of Law and his B.A. from Dartmouth College.

Timothy Riordan, Board Trustee, Democrat
A Board Trustee since 2008, Mr. Riordan has many years of experience in management and public finance. Mr. Riordan has previously served as Assistant City Manager, Acting City Manager and Finance Director for the City of Cincinnati, Deputy Director and Acting Director for the Dayton International Airport, and Acting City Manager and Finance Director for the City of Dayton.

Appointed June 30, 1869 by the Superior Court of Cincinnati: