Lough points to work experience and local civic engagement as factors he feels would serve him well in role
Thanks to a Sarasota County Commission vote on Oct. 21, David Lough, president of the Downtown Sarasota Condominium Association (DSCA), has won a seat as an at-large representative on the county’s Citizens Advisory Committee for Public Transportation.
His term will be effective from November through October 2028, a county staff memo in the commission’s Oct. 21 agenda packet pointed out.
Only one other person had applied for the position: Scott Whiterell, who already was a member of the committee, as he noted in his application.
When Chair Joe Neunder read the agenda item into the record early in the afternoon of Oct. 21, he pointed out that two people had applied for the at-large seat. Just after he opened the floor for nominations, a pause ensued, with commissioners appearing to speak to each other without using their microphones.
Neunder then indicated that an update of the software on their dais computers had halted the proceedings temporarily.
After that update ended, Commissioner Mark Smith nominated Lough. No other member of the board proposed the reappointment of Whiterell.
Thus, Neunder offered his congratulations to Lough.
In his application, Lough wrote that he is “a retired business manager with a background in marketing, product management and international, new business development, including multiple general manager roles for consumer products firms” while he was living in Germany, England and Canada.
While he was based in the United States, he continued, he “also served in senior executive roles …” Among those, Lough pointed out, he was vice president of a Fortune 500 company, “leading global strategy and operations across multiple markets. My work included extensive travel to countries such as Japan, France, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia and Australia, further broadening my perspective on infrastructure, transportation systems, and urban development.”
Since he moved to the Sarasota area 14 years ago, Lough noted, he has “been actively involved in local civic and neighborhood association leadership roles.” For the past seven years, he added, he has served on the board of the Downtown Sarasota Condominium Association; he has been the president for more than four years.
In his role with DSCA, Lough continued, “I’ve developed and maintained detailed data on downtown population and density, which has directly supported work I’ve done on a micro-transportation concept for the greater downtown area.”
He also has served on the board of the Rosemary District Association for eight years, he added.
Further, Lough wrote, over the past six years, he has attended most of the Sarasota City Commission meetings, and he maintains “strong working relationships with city staff and elected officials.”
The reason he was applying for the advisory board seat, Lough explained, is “because I understand that public transit in a geographically and demographically diverse county like Sarasota — with dense urban neighborhoods, suburban developments, and semi-rural areas — presents complex challenges. Making informed decisions about access, coverage, and funding requires thoughtful collaboration. As the advisory committee works closely with county staff and the County Commission,” Lough continued, “I’m hopeful that my background in international business leadership, data-informed planning, and local civic engagement can contribute thoughtful inputs to effective transportation solutions.”
Whiterell noted in his application for reappointment that he is a food control specialist with the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs.
In response to the form’s question about why he wanted to keep serving on the advisory board, he wrote, “Like to service the community of Sarasota Co.”
Committee attendance records for 2024 and 2025 show that Whiterell was present for 60% of the 2024 sessions and 67% of those thus far this year.