The field is set for county elections in Sarasota and Manatee counties, where a number of write-in candidates ensures closed primaries in several key races.

That includes two Sarasota County Commission races. Only Republicans will be able to vote in a GOP primary in Sarasota County Commission District 1, where Republicans Alexandra Coe and Teresa Mast will face off. The winner will only face write-in opponent Hope Williams, but if she did not qualify, all voters in the county would have been eligible to vote in the primary as it would have formally determined the election outcome.

Write-in candidate Janique Tenney also qualified in Sarasota County Commission District 3, but that carries less relevance. Shari Thornton is already running in November without party affiliation, and will face whoever wins a hotly contested Republican Primary appointed incumbent Commissioner Neil Rainford and for Sheriff Tom Knight. No Democrats filed for either seat.

In Manatee County, Republicans Carol Ann Felts and Steve Metallo face each other in a Primary for an open County Commission District 1 seat, with the winner headed to battle Democrat Glenn Pearson and independent Jen Hamey. Meanwhile, two Republicans, April Culbreath and Tal Siddique, are running for a District 3 seat, where the winner will face Diana Shoemaker. Write-in Jeffrey Gray also qualified but does not close any primaries. In a District 5 commission contest, incumbent Ray Turner faces a Republican primary challenge from Robert McCann, with independent Joseph Di Bartolomeo waiting on the November ballot.

But the big County Commission contest in Manatee will be an at-large seat, where outgoing District 3 Commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge qualified to challenge at-large Commissioner George Kruse in a GOP Primary rather than running for his old seat. The winner of that August race will go on to face Democrat Sari Lindroos Valimaki. Write-in Nathan Meyer also qualified.

A more consequential write-in, Travis Casper qualified and closed a Republican primary between Darin George and incumbent Manatee Property Appraiser Charles Hackney. And write-in Thomas Dell shut down a Republican Primary where appointed Manatee Supervisor of Elections James Satcher faces a Republican Primary challenge from Scott Farrington.

A partisan showdown will take place in Sarasota County in November, where long-time Tax Collector Barbara Ford-Coates, a Democrat, faces a challenge from term-limited County Commissioner Mike Moran, a Republican. Moran must first get through a Republican primary with GOP candidate Charles Bear, who also qualified for the countywide race.

Less immediately obvious in consequence, but write-in candidates filed for every Sarasota County Hospital Board seat as well. But Democrats qualified in every seat as well. The following candidates qualified to have their names appear of the ballot: in at-large Seat 1, Republican Sharon DePeters and Tamzin Rosenwasser and Democrat Alan Sprintz; in at-large Seat 2, Kevin Cooper and Stephen Guffanti and Democrat John Lutz; in at-large Seat 3, Pamela Beitlich and Mary Flynn O’Neill and Democrat George Davis; and in District Seat 1, Republicans Sarah Lodge and Tanya Parus and Democrat Vicki Lynn Nighswander.

Candidates also qualified in nonpartisan School Board races in both counties. In Sarasota County, District 2 incumbent Karen faces a challenge from Liz Barker. In District 3, incumbent Tom Edwards faces two challengers, Thomas Babicz and Gregory Wood. In Manatee County, two seats are open. In District 1, Heather Felton, Alex Garner and Mark Stanoch all qualified to run. In District 3, Charles Kennedy, Jonathan Lynch and Perri Ann Parkman will appear on the ballot. School Board races will appear on the Aug. 20 ballot, with runoffs in November if needed.

The candidate qualification deadline marked the end of the election season for several elected officials in Sarasota County, who won re-election without any opposition. In Sarasota County, several constitutional officers won election unopposed, including Clark of Court Karen Rushing, Sheriff Kurt Hoffman, Property Appraiser Bill Furst and Supervisor of Elections Ron Turner. County Commissioner Ron Cutsinger, who represents District 5, also won a second term without opposition. All were Republicans. In Manatee County, Clerk of Court Angel Colonneso and Sheriff Rick Wells, both Republicans, won without opposition. 

 Tervis, the nationally loved and family-owned drinkware company founded in 1946, recently revealed its new VentureTM Stainless Water Bottle with 2-in-1 VersaLidTM, available now in two sizes: 26-ounce or 36-ounce.vSimilar to the Venture Lite Water Bottle that launched last year, the new stainless version has the same 2-in-1 VersaLid, allowing users to choose between sipping with a straw or chugging with a spout. The water bottle is also leakproof when closing the lid and securing the lock, and an ergonomic handle allows for it to be easily carried for on-the-go occasions.v“One of the notable new features with the new Venture Stainless Water Bottle with 2-in-1 VersaLid is that it keeps water cold for up to 24 hours,” said Hosana Fieber, CEO of Tervis. “As we approach the notoriously hot summer months, having a beverage on-the-go that remains cold is vital.” Finished with DuraPrint® for chip and peel resistance, the water bottle has a quiet, non-slip base to keep it silently in place, and the 26-ounce size fits most cup holders for ease of transport. Other exciting features for the Venture Stainless Water Bottle with 2-in-1 VersaLid include it being dishwasher safe, triple insulated, BPA-free and comes with a limited guarantee. The water bottle is now available at Tervis.com, Tervis retail locations and coming soon to local and mass retailers. Like other stainless Tervis products, customers will be able to choose from numerous designs, add their name or initials with custom engraving or create a custom design by selecting the background, text and images.For more information, visit Tervis.com. 

Pictured: New Venture Stainless Water Bottle with 2-in-1 VersaLid shown in Inkreel-Colorburst

Coastal Orthopedics, a full-service provider of comprehensive orthopedic surgery, sports medicine, spine care, diagnostic imaging and physical therapy service, recently had its state-of-the-art surgery center named a Best Ambulatory Surgery Center by U.S. News & World Report. For the inaugural listing, U.S. News & World Report collaborated with CareJourney to rate nearly 5,000 surgery centers in four separate specialty areas: colonoscopy and endoscopy, ophthalmology, orthopedics and spine, and urology. According to U.S. News & World Report, ambulatory surgery centers were evaluated based on objective, risk-adjusted measures of their patients’ outcomes, including how successfully they avoided complications, ER visits, unplanned hospitalizations and other undesirable outcomes. The company awards the designation of Best Ambulatory Surgery Centers only to the highest-rated surgical centers that satisfy its statistical assessment of performance, with fewer than 15 percent of evaluated facilities earning a high-performing rating. Coastal Orthopedics’ surgery center, known as Musculoskeletal Ambulatory Surgery Center and located at 8000 State Road 64 in Bradenton, Florida, was named amongst 21 other ambulatory surgery centers in Florida in the area of orthopedics and spine. “We are incredibly honored to have our facility deemed a Best Ambulatory Surgery Center by U.S. News & World Report,” said Paige LeMay, chief executive officer of Coastal Orthopedics. “This designation is a true testament of our dedication to taking great care of our patients and improving the quality of life for them, their families and our community.” Coastal Orthopedics’ surgery center relocated to its current location on State Road 64 in 2022 to better serve its patients who live in the rapidly growing Manatee and Sarasota counties. The facility offers same-day surgery and features the latest in cutting-edge medical equipment and surgical devices to allow its physicians to perform the most effective techniques for each case. Additionally, the 88,000-square-foot headquarters also houses clinical services, a physical therapy department, administrative offices and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), among other services. 

EVERLY, Wellen Park’s first custom home neighborhood, now has additional model homes open to the public. The gated neighborhood of luxury single-family homes offers private amenities and select homesites along a 50-acre lake for prime sunset views. EVERLY offers custom homes by regional builders Neal Signature Homes, John Cannon Homes and Lee Wetherington Homes on 75-foot and 85-foot homesites and upscale residences on 62-foot sites from Homes by WestBay. Home sales have started, and all seven model homes are now open to the public.  EVERLY neighborhood is walkable to the future Sarasota County School District high school and K-8 school site. Outdoor recreation enthusiasts will enjoy even more access to trails with the future Oakheart Nature Trail, which will wind alongside EVERLY’s featured 50-acre lake and north toward a future Sarasota County School District high school site, stretching across East River Road and ending at Playmore Road. 

To learn more, visit.

Sarasota County Sheriff Kurt A. Hoffman is pleased to announce that six members graduated in Class XXX of the Command Officer Management Program Cohort sponsored by St. Leo University and hosted by the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office on June 6. Lieutenants Jennifer Shaddix-Barker, Lewis Hirtzel, Diana Darby, Mariah Piper, and Emergency Operations Managers Janine Griffin and Jared Winch participated in the 18-credit hour certificate program consisting of six courses over six months. 

Pictured: Left to right front row: Lt. Jennifer Shaddix-Barker, Lt. Lewis Hirtzel, Lt. Diana Darby, Emergency Operations Mgr. Janine Griffin; Left to right back row: Lt. Mariah Piper, Emergency Operations Mgr. Jared Winch, Sheriff Kurt A. Hoffman.

Please be advised, the Office of Angelina “Angel” Colonneso, Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller, is closed on Wednesday, June 19, in observance of Juneteenth. The office will reopen on Thursday, June 20, at 8:30 a.m. Customers can access online services on the Clerk & Comptroller’s website 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at www.ManateeClerk.com.  

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