By Rob Clark, Strategic Communications Intern with The Apopka Voice
Everybody knows it.
Even if you don’t live directly in Apopka, you know it. The downtown area needs revitalization to keep up with the growing number of new residents who move to the area each year.
“I think that ever since I was coming to Wekiva Springs as a kid, downtown Apopka has looked the same,” says Caitlin Kasheta, Executive Director of Main Street Apopka (MSA). “And now, it's really just become a funnel for people passing through towards Mount Dora or Orlando.”
With almost 100 small businesses throughout the greater downtown area, Apopka has notable potential to become the destination and not just a pass-through for something else. This is what Kasheta and her team at MSA recognize and hope to turn from mere opinions to literal truth.
MSA is a non-profit organization focused on transforming the downtown business district from its current transient thoroughfare to a vibrant hub of local commerce, culture, and community engagement.
Kasheta and her husband first got involved in the Apopka community with their non-profit, Kasheta Farms, which works to promote personal growth and community through working with animals and learning about agriculture.
“We were doing events in the community and getting to know a lot of people here in Apopka,” says Kasheta. “And when I came across the Main Street program, I thought, well, gosh, I can do this.”
According to Kasheta, a little over a year later they’ve hosted events and worked with numerous downtown businesses, including Three Odd Guys, Creative Hub, Downtown Barbers, and Propagate Social House, on events hosted by others. They also have notable community leaders interested in their progress, like Shaunte McNeil-Jemison, founder of Re-Imagine Communities, and Elza Clarke-Samuel, manager at Synovus Bank.
With what little time the organization has been around, they have begun to lay the groundwork to help the downtown area thrive and learn what the community needs for greater success.
“It’s a really trendy thing to shop local and be investing your dollars back into the place you live,” Kasheta says when talking about the importance of a downtown area. “But our hearts cry for human connection, and this is a place where it can be found.”
Apopka currently does not have a strong hub where business meets community, and the downtown area, as seen by MSA, could provide the perfect space for community members to come together and take pride in ownership.
Additionally, Apopka is one of the most diverse cities in Orange County, which makes it an even greater challenge when incorporating language barriers into the mix. Kasheta notes, “A great downtown brings people together from no matter where you come from, no matter what language you speak.”
MSA acknowledges that the biggest hurdle for the downtown area is to change its reputation. With the ongoing homeless issue and obvious need for beautification, the group is candid but optimistic in their 10-year goal to change downtown Apopka.
“In the first one to three years, only those working directly with MSA will see it. In three to five years, the residents and business owners will see it, and in five to eight years, the surrounding community and visitors will start to notice the change,” says Kasheta.
Currently, the organization is trying to garner interest in what's currently in downtown Apopka by helping local business owners advertise and market themselves. Centered on local small businesses, MSA sees the beginning steps as bolstering what's currently there.
“Once people believe that there really is ‘More to explore’ in downtown Apopka, they will start investing into the small businesses that operate here by shopping and enjoying their products and services,” Kasheta says.
Apart from direct community work, MSA has been busy with other projects that will lead to further community identity and overall awareness of what Apopka offers. Most notable is their project Apopka Home Grown exhibit, which is projected to be open in mid-August 2025 at the Museum of Apopkans.
Formally known as “HomeGrown: Exploring the Foods that Define Us,” the exhibit will showcase the community’s history and culture through the perspective of food. Being done in partnership with the Apopka Historical Society, the project will help bring cohesion to Apopka’s diverse cultural history, highlighting food as a unifying force.
“Since Apopka’s inception, there has been Spanish, European, Dutch, Native-American, African-American, and others influencing how Apopkan’s live life,” Kasheta says. “The flavors, traditions, framework, etiquettes, and recipes of these cultures have and continue to shape who we are.”
Food is a simple yet effective way to bring the community together, but MSA aims to go beyond that in uniting the residents of Apopka. Downtown areas have the potential to create the space that is needed for true human connection.
Though it will take time and effort, what Kasheta and MSA strive for is something to be excited and hopeful about. After working for a relatively short period, the team is looking for all the help they can get.
If interested, please visit the Main Street Apopka website.
Editor's Note: The Apopka Voice added an "opinion tag" and edited parts of this article to clarify attribution after its original publication on Sunday evening.
