The chairman of Leesburg’s Planning Commission, which had been instrumental in the regulatory process approving The Villages’ future development in the city, has been named president of the Lake County Bar Association.
James Argento, a Lake County prosecutor since 2007, was appointed to the Commission in 2010. Two years later, he became its chairman.
“I am glad to have played a part in The Villages coming to our city and hope its development benefits our community by creating revenue and added interest,” Argento said. “Other parts of Lake County are really thriving and The Villages can help regenerate our awesome city of Leesburg.”
The 36-year-old Argento serves as chair of the Golden Triangle YMCA Board of Directors and Be Free, Lake County’s drug prevention coalition. He also is a board member of the local legal aid initiative, Community Legal Services of Mid-Florida, and is a trustee of the Leesburg Missionary Baptist Church.
A graduate of the University of Florida and Florida State University’s Law School, Argento has lived in Leesburg since 2009 with his wife Jeanette and two children, 6-year-old Aiden and 3-year-old Emory.
“The Villages holds a special place for me,” he continued. “I had my first date with Jeanette in The Villages’ Outback restaurant. We often return to enjoy the music in the squares.”
The Lake County Bar Association’s 150 attorneys practice in Lake, Sumter and Marion counties. Some members have offices in The Villages. The Association sponsors a radio forum for Lake County judicial candidates, and has participated in a Veterans Treatment Court educational summit held in The Villages.
