| SARASOTA COUNTY – Neil Rainford has been appointed by Governor Ron DeSantis to fill the Sarasota County Commission seat that became vacant after the passing of long-time community leader Commissioner Nancy C. Detert. The District 3 seat covers Venice and parts of Nokomis and North Port. Rainford is scheduled to take the Oath of Office, Tuesday, June 13, at 8:30 a.m. in the commission chambers of the Robert L. Anderson Administration Center, 4000 S. Tamiami Trail in Venice. Following that ceremony, he’ll join the Board of Sarasota County Commissioners for a regularly scheduled commission meeting at 9 a.m. in the same chambers. Rainford, 36, is a Senior Executive with Sarasota-based Mullet’s Aluminum Products Inc., one of the largest architectural aluminum manufacturers in the Southeast United States. He moved to the Sarasota area shortly after graduating from Florida State University with a bachelor’s of science degree with an emphasis on Urban and Regional Planning in 2009. “Assuming the seat of a legend like Nancy Detert won’t be easy, but I’m honored to be entrusted by Governor DeSantis with this appointment to the Sarasota County Commission,” Rainford said. “We are consistently ranked as one of the top communities in the nation in which to live. So, we are already doing a lot right.” But he said there are ongoing needs in Sarasota County, and his priorities will be infrastructure, business climate and workforce housing. He already has experience in local government and the community. He is a current member of the Sarasota County Planning Commission and was an elected member of the Charter Review Board. He has also been twice elected Secretary of the Republican Executive Committee. And he formerly served on the Board of Trustees of Tabernacle Church. Rainford has been married for 11 years and has one son. |