Dear Residents of Apopka, 

In March 2025, the City of Apopka, in partnership with Duke Energy, began an important process to take a serious look at the future of our community. An outside organization was brought in to evaluate where we were as a city, engage our community, and help develop a strategic plan that would guide Apopka from 2026 through 2031. 

At the time, I was serving as a city commissioner, and I supported the effort. I believed then, as I do today, that a growing city needs a clear vision for its future and a realistic plan for how we are going to get there. 

The strategic plan was completed in January. When I took office as mayor and began reviewing city operations in greater detail, I went back and looked closely at that plan. What I found concerned me. We had invested the time and resources into creating a good plan, but we had not put the structure in place to actually carry it out. 

A strategic plan is only as good as what we do with it. It cannot simply become another document that sits on a shelf. It requires implementation, accountability, communication and measurable results. 

That is where our focus must be now. 

One of the most important things highlighted during the strategic planning process was just how quickly Apopka is growing. In 2020, our population was approximately 54,873. By 2024, it had grown to approximately 61,820. That means Apopka added 6,947 residents in just four years. 

Our community has continued to grow since then, bringing both opportunity and responsibility. 

More residents mean more demand on our roads, water and wastewater systems, public safety, parks, development services, and city employees. We cannot expect a city government built for a smaller Apopka to continue operating the same way as our population and needs continue to grow. 

The 2026–2031 Strategic Plan recognizes many of these challenges. It addresses communication, infrastructure and transportation, organizational health, economic vitality, safety and livability, community engagement and partnerships. More importantly, the implementation plan identifies action items, responsible departments, and ways to measure our progress. 

Now we have to put those ideas into action. 

Communication is one area where I believe we must do better. 

During the 2025 budget and policy process, several important decisions were considered and approved, including changes involving rates and service fees. Months later, many residents were surprised when those decisions began showing up in their household bills. 

Regardless of when a decision was made or who was in office when it was approved, our residents should not first learn about an important change when a bill arrives in the mail. 

We can do better than that, and under my administration, we will. 

Better communication was one of the needs identified in the strategic plan. It calls for more regular communication with residents, better access to information, stronger community engagement, and ways to determine whether City Hall is actually reaching the people we serve. 

I agree with those goals, and now it is time to put them into practice. 

Moving forward, every major objective in our strategic plan needs clear ownership. We need to know who is responsible for it, what we are trying to accomplish, how we will measure success, what resources are needed, and when we expect the work to be completed. 

Most importantly, you should be able to see our progress. That means establishing realistic timelines, identifying funding when necessary, assigning responsibility, and regularly communicating with the public about where we stand.  

Some of these goals will take years to accomplish. Others can begin immediately. But whether a project takes three months or three years, there must be accountability along the way. 

This is also why my administration is taking a broader look at the organizational structure of city government. 

A city serving more than 60,000 residents requires clear leadership, defined responsibilities, communication between departments, and employees who have the tools and support necessary to do their jobs effectively. 

This does not mean simply adding positions or spending more money. Bigger government does not automatically mean better government. We must ensure our organizational structure makes sense, eliminates unnecessary duplication, creates accountability, and puts the right people in the right positions to serve our residents. 

The 2026–2031 Strategic Plan gives us a roadmap. Now it is our responsibility to use it. 

Over the coming months, you will hear more from my office about our progress. We will talk about what we are working on, what we have completed, where we have encountered challenges, and where we still have work to do. 

To me, that is what transparency looks like. It means sharing the successes, but it also means being willing to talk about the challenges. 

Apopka is growing, and our expectations for city government should grow with it. We have an opportunity to build a city government that communicates better, plans smarter, operates more efficiently, and remains accountable to the people it serves. 

The plan is in place. Now it’s time to get to work. 

Brighter days are ahead for the City of Apopka.