Ex-politico hands off firm

BRADENTON — Former two-term Manatee County Commissioner Stan Stephens announced his retirement from the local construction firm he co-founded in 1987, Manasota Commercial Construction.

Stephens was initially elected as a commissioner in 1992, and won re-election in 1996. Clayton Johnson, who co-founded the firm with Stephens, is now the president and principal owner, according to a release. Johnson has been in the local contracting and construction business since 1982.

Manasota Commercial Construction has worked on a variety of well-known buildings. Projects include the Manatee Association of Realtors office in east Manatee County; an east Manatee County branch for the Manatee County Tax Collector's Office; and phase one and two and the dome of the Bishop Planetarium at the South Florida Museum in downtown Bradenton.