Apopka Murals unveiled its latest painting on Friday night, which brings new life to the western wall of Domino’s Pizza at 2 E. Main St. 

“This started as a small project to beautify a smaller area right into the Downtown Barbers where I work at, and this turned into something a lot bigger than what we expected,” said Apopka Murals founder Luis Rivera at the ceremony. “Thank you to all of you guys for actually helping me give back to the community and giving me the freedom to do it.” 

The new mural depicts local icons and landmarks, including orange blossoms, City Hall, the West Orange Trail pedestrian bridge, a train on the Orange Belt Railway, and a page of The Apopka Chief. The word “Apopka” stretches across the mural in the font of the city’s logo. 

Supporters at the mural unveiling included commissioner-elect Yesenia Baron, Melanie Jankun of Creative Hub of Apopka, and Mayor Bryan Nelson. The mural cost $5,000, with The Apopka Chief and the Apopka Serves Foundation each covering half. Creative Hub of Apopka covered the supplies. 

“It’s exciting to think that everyone coming into downtown Apopka from the west is going to see this beautiful mural for years to come,” said J.C. Derrick, publisher of The Apopka Chief. “The artist did a great job of capturing the essence of the city.”  

Ben Keller, a Connecticut-based artist who previously painted the orange grove mural at Chito’s Cutz, started painting the mural on April 19. He enjoyed “bringing in elements of the historical beauty of Apopka’s past,” especially the train. 

“I grew up in a railroad town, or a rich railroad history town, so I’ve always been fascinated by them, and some of my ancestors used to work on the Pennsylvania Railroad,” he said. “Without the railroads, a lot of towns in America wouldn’t have been built or founded, so they kind of paved the way.” 

Keller said the stucco on the wall and some of the painting’s details were challenging, but he “wasn’t fazed by it.” 

“I hope this could serve as a sign of revitalization of the town and bringing in more artwork and more funding for the public arts,” he said. “I’m just honored to have the opportunity to paint and honor the town this way.” 

Chad Creech of Apopka Serves Foundation, shared his appreciation with the guests. 

“We’re so glad that we were able to have a lot of partners here in the community come together and make this happen for us,” Creech said. 

Non-profit revitalization program Main Street Apopka previously unveiled a mural on the Domino’s wall last August, but the wall was painted over barely a week later due to plagiarism allegations. The city of Apopka terminated its funding agreement with Main Street Apopka following the controversy.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to note the Creative Hub covered supplies.