2 newly-elected Sarasota County Commissioners sworn in Tuesday

SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB) - -Two newly-elected Sarasota County Board of Commissioners were sworn in Tuesday in a ceremony at the County Government building.

The Sarasota County Board of County Commissioners recognized newly elected representatives Mark Smith, District 2, and Joe Neunder, District 4, on Tuesday, Nov. 22.

Born in Detroit, Smith moved to Sarasota in 1963 and graduated from Riverview High School in 1973. He earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Georgia Institute of Technology before returning to Sarasota with his family in 1990. In 1994, he started his own architectural firm, Smith Architects, P.A., which is located in Siesta Key Village.

Active in the Siesta Key community, Smith served on the Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, the Siesta Key Presidents Council, and the Sheriff’s Advisory Board.

Smith and his wife Esther have four children.

Neunder, who served on the City of Venice Council from 2020 through 2022, moved from Buffalo, N.Y., to Florida as a teenager. He swam competitively for Swim Florida and Venice High School, and graduated from Pine View School.

He continued his education at Florida’s public universities and earned a Doctorate in Chiropractic Medicine from Life University in Georgia. He returned to Sarasota to open his business and raise his family following completion of his education.

He has also served on the Evalyn Sadlier-Jones Branch-YMCA Board of Directors, the Boys & Girls Club, the Sarasota County Planning Commission, City of Venice Historic Preservation Board, and more.

He and his wife Cindy have three sons.

The next BCC meeting will be held 9 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 13, 1660 Ringling Blvd.

Additional photos of the ceremony can be found here. For more information, call 311 or visit scgov.net.