From Staff Reports
In Summary
Marcea Ustler began her campaign after Hurricane Milton caused unprecedented flooding in October 2024, prompting suspicions that human error—not just rainfall—contributed to the damage. Public Works Director Vladimir Simonovski and his team eventually uncovered a decades-old, clogged well-head drain and cleared it, allowing water levels to drop and preventing further flooding. Additional restoration efforts by neighboring Charleston Park are underway, resolving a secondary drainage issue and marking what Marcea Ustler calls a significant victory for residents and accountability in Apopka.
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Hawthorne Oaks is a well-established community in Apopka dating back to 2000. Known for its quiet streets and predictable routines, the neighborhood was shocked when Hurricane Milton turned parts of it into unwanted waterfront and left residents searching for answers.
Related: City unveils plan to stop Border Lake flooding.
As water continued to rise long after the hurricane had passed, homeowners in this subdivision realized the problem was not a one-time weather event but a systemic failure they did not understand—and could no longer ignore. That realization set Marcea Ustler on a determined path to uncover the cause, a journey that would ultimately reshape the neighborhood’s understanding of its own infrastructure.
After more than a year of emails, meetings, and persistent advocacy, Ustler, a nearby resident to the neighborhood, says the community has finally received long-awaited answers—and relief—from the stormwater flooding that has repeatedly threatened homes in Hawthorne Oaks.
Ustler, whose property borders one of the subdivision’s retention ponds, first raised the alarm after the pond overflowed during Milton, flooding streets, vehicles, and yards in what she called “an unprecedented” event. Convinced the issue was not solely due to heavy rainfall, she began pushing city and county officials for answers.
“I felt very strongly that while Milton brought a lot of rain, a measure of human failure was also to blame,” Ustler wrote in an email to local government representatives. Over the next 14 months, she documented additional flooding events in July, September, and October, enlisted local media, attended City Council meetings, and pressed for an investigation.
A Hidden Drain—and a Breakthrough
The turning point came when Public Works Director and City Engineer Vladimir Simonovski and his team began reviewing historical documents, drainage plans, and stormwater maps. Their research uncovered something no one in the neighborhood—nor Ustler herself, a resident there since 1991—knew existed: a well-head drain installed by the State Road Department (now the Florida Department of Transportation) in 1957, located in the woods across from Ustler’s home.
The drain, designed to move water from the Ustler/Hawthorne Oaks pond directly into the aquifer, was clogged and effectively nonfunctional. When FDOT declined to inspect or acknowledge ownership of the drain, Apopka’s stormwater team took matters into their own hands.
On November 4, using little more than “a few farming tools,” Ustler said, the team manually cleared the blockage. “It was like watching a bathtub drain,” she recalled. “The pond drained and drained, and I’m delighted to say that it is now back to its previous water level.”
A Second Problem—and a Second Solution
The discovery sparked additional follow-up. A separate drain connected to a third pond—owned by the nearby Charleston Park subdivision—was also clogged and overgrown. Once notified, subdivision leadership hired a restoration company, and work to clear the invasive weeds and restore the drainage began on November 24.
“Our community has been sandwiched between two clogged drains for over a year," Ustler said.
Credit Where It’s Due
Despite her frustrations, Ustler is emphatic about who deserves recognition.
“Vladimir Simonovski and his team worked diligently—finding paperwork, tracking documents, taking readings, contacting agencies,” she said. “Mayor Nelson also deserves credit for asking Vladimir and Radley Williams to come out and take a first-hand look. Those steps were the first real action by the city.”
She reserved special praise for Mary Rich Buschmann, president of the Hawthorne Oaks HOA.
“Mary has been a tireless advocate for her community,” Ustler said. “She was absolutely instrumental and essential to making sure the process kept moving toward answers and solutions.”
What Comes Next
Though the flooding crisis appears resolved, Ustler believes serious questions remain. She expects the city to investigate why documentation, studies, and protocols for past developments were incomplete or ignored. Still, after 14 months of pressure, she is relieved to finally have good news to share.
For now, residents are enjoying a return to normal pond levels, but Ustler says the experience has exposed lingering concerns about oversight and communication in Apopka’s stormwater management systems. She intends to continue monitoring the situation alongside the HOA and pressing for answers to unresolved questions about documentation and development practices.
Five Key Points
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Flooding in Hawthorne Oaks began after Hurricane Milton in October 2024 and continued for more than a year.
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A forgotten FDOT-installed drain from 1957 was discovered clogged and preventing proper stormwater flow into the aquifer.
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Apopka’s stormwater team manually cleared the drain on November 4, 2025, restoring normal pond levels.
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A second drainage issue tied to Charleston Park’s pond is also being addressed through restoration work that began in November.
Editor's Note: The HOA president of Hawthorne Oaks is Mary Rich-Buschmann. An earlier version of this article did not include her full name. Marcea Ustler is a resident near Hawthorn Oaks, but does not live in the subdivision. A previous edition stated she did.
