Apopka city departments outlined staffing needs, redevelopment priorities, technology upgrades and long-term planning initiatives during the opening portion of the City Commission’s first preliminary FY2027 budget workshop Wednesday evening, marking an earlier-than-usual start to the city’s annual budget process. 

The May 13 workshop came just two weeks after Mayor Nick Nesta was sworn into office and after he previously expressed interest in holding additional workshops to increase public input on city issues, including the budget. In prior years, detailed departmental budget workshops typically began in July. 

Nesta said the preliminary workshop was designed as a high‑level overview to give commissioners and residents an early look at department needs before they begin prioritizing later in the budget process. 

“I did not have any say on their budget,” Nesta said about department heads’ requests. “It was prepared [to] ask for everything, ask for the moon, the stars, and then give us a little bit of a runway to prioritize for us, a little bit what that looks like.” 

Finance Director Blanche Sherman outlined a proposed budget workshop timeline that adds meetings in June and early July before the city sets a rollback and proposed operating millage rate in mid‑July. That would be followed by September budget hearings, including a tentative Sept. 3 date contingent on Orange County’s schedule. 

Early departments highlighted recurring themes related to city growth, staffing demands, infrastructure modernization and redevelopment planning. In all, 14 city departments made presentations.  

Human Resources Director Joe Patton said the city has 649 full-time positions and 115 part-time positions. Patton said the city added approximately 91 positions over the past two years and is looking at more than 60 additional positions in the upcoming budget cycle.  

Patton requested several staffing additions within human resources and risk management, including making a part-time records worker full time, a risk management position, and an executive assistant position. He also said the city plans a 3.3% pay band adjustment tied to inflation and intends to continue 6% merit increases, which he described as “a big recruiting tool.”  

The Human Resources Department also projected a 6.5% increase in employer healthcare contributions, down from 11.5% the previous year.  

Resident Sylvester Hall said proper staffing was critical to city operations and public safety. 

We should never be where we at now, period,” Hall said. “We need strong department heads to come to you and say, ‘I need this’ and not be afraid of losing their jobs by saying that.” 

IT Director Robert Hippler briefed commissioners on a multi-year push to modernize the city’s technology, covering wireless infrastructure, cybersecurity, disaster recovery, new code enforcement and enterprise resource planning systems, and ADA‑compliant online access, while exploring AI tools with what he called a cautious, public-records‑aware approach. 

Economic Development Director Antranette Forbes said the city’s economic development efforts are focused on business attraction, business retention, workforce development and entrepreneurship. 

Forbes said the city recently expanded its commercial real estate database from about seven properties to nearly 150 and said the city needs to develop a formal incentive program. 

“We do need to look at a more formalized program with an associated budget that goes with it,” Forbes said.  

The Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) portion of the presentation highlighted neighborhood improvement programs, downtown redevelopment efforts and future planning initiatives, including a CRA master plan update and a homeowner down payment assistance program.  

Planning Manager Bobby Howell outlined staffing and internal infrastructure needs within the Planning Department, requesting funding for a Geographic Information System addressing administrator (GIS), an associate planner, and a transportation planner to keep pace with citywide development activity. A GIS is the computer-based mapping system the city uses to track parcels, addresses, zoning and other spatial data. 

During public comment following the City Clerk presentation, resident Albert McKimmie urged the city to make public records and city documents easier for residents to access. 

“If we had a computer desk here and things that are already in the system, we could certainly go and look at that,” McKimmie said.