Station Street default notice could become latest chapter in Apopka’s long-running downtown redevelopment saga

 

 

 

For decades, downtown Apopka has lived in a permanent state of “almost.”

Almost a town center. Almost a city center. Almost a walkable downtown. Almost a transformational mixed-use district that would finally stitch together years of political speeches, conceptual renderings, groundbreaking ceremonies, and economic development promises into something real.

 

Related: New commission signals tougher stance on development with unanimous townhouse rejection.

 

It started when Apopka Mayor John Land purchased property with the intention of creating a “town center.”

 

In 2016, Mayor Joe Kilsheimer inked a deal with Taurus Southern Investments to create the Apopka City Center. The finished product was supposed to be completed by 2026.

 

In 2020, developer Tony Benge announced his intention to restart work on the Floridian Town Center with 2025 as a targeted completion date. He also won a bid to develop the Station Street project. Both projects were endorsed by Mayor Bryan Nelson.

 

 

Then, somewhere off in the distance, Charlie Brown lined up for another short field goal attempt with Lucy holding the football.

 

Just like so many promises before it, the Station Street project was pitched as the development that could redefine downtown Apopka. It promised affordable housing, restaurants, retail space, pedestrian connectivity, public gathering areas, trail extensions, and a downtown plaza designed to anchor the city’s urban core. But before a single building rose from the property, the project became one of the most divisive political battles in recent Apopka history — a fight marked by angry public meetings, accusations that city leaders were prioritizing developers over residents, and escalating tensions between elected officials and one of the city’s most prominent developers.

 

Now, after years of controversy, campaign donations, development agreements, groundbreaking ceremonies, and repeated promises of transformation, the project appears headed toward collapse.

 

At its June 3 meeting, the Apopka City Commission is expected to consider issuing a formal Notice of Default against Standard Investments and Holdings LLC, led by Benge, after city staff reported that, nearly two years after required deadlines passed, the developer still has not submitted the mandatory design specifications required under the project’s development agreement.

 

If approved, it would represent yet another stalled chapter in Apopka’s decades-long pursuit of a true downtown revival — one that has now stretched across four mayors, multiple developers, and countless promises of “coming soon.”

 

 

The Station Street redevelopment proposal emerged from the city’s broader vision to transform downtown Apopka into a walkable mixed-use district centered around SunRail, the trail corridor, and future urban redevelopment.

 

In August 2022, the city publicly solicited development concepts for the property. Eventually, city leaders selected a proposal from Standard Investments and Holdings. The proposal envisioned affordable apartments, retail and restaurant space, structured parking, public gathering areas, pedestrian improvements, and a city-owned public plaza.

 

But when the proposal first came before the City Council in early 2022, it crashed into a wall of skepticism and public opposition. Residents raised concerns about density, traffic, parking, road closures, and whether the city was becoming too willing to reshape downtown in favor of developer interests rather than neighborhood concerns.

 

Commissioner Kyle Becker emerged as one of the project’s most vocal critics.

 

“The biggest red flag for me on this one is obviously we put an RFP out to the street, and we get one response,” Becker said during the discussion. “That’s a red flag… because you don’t have a variety [of proposals]. That’s what happened with our city center with Taurus, and we see where that’s at. I think we should learn our lessons.”

 

Becker also publicly questioned campaign donations connected to the proposal.

 

“I think it should be publicly known that the interests that are part of this bid process have ties to people who are running on this Council,” Becker said. “I just want to make sure [it's clear]... it’s only a one-bid response, and that the person bidding has direct ties to campaign contributions for a member of this Council.”

 

During the 2022 mayoral election cycle, Benge contributed to Nelson’s campaign.

 

The council ultimately rejected the proposal in a unanimous 5-0 vote.

 

 

“I was the lone bidder in your RFP process,” Benge said. “Our team spent $35,000 and countless hundreds of hours working with our architects, engineers, planners… the same ones that are involved with Floridian Town Center, plus two other large developments we have here in Apopka.”

 

He accused Becker of unfairly tying campaign contributions to the denial of the project.

 

"For our trouble, I was personally insulted and had accusations leveled at me by Mr. Becker. That because I opted to exercise my God-given right to support a political candidate of my choice... that was the basis of the denial of the RFP. I'm glad Mr. Becker said today that he stands by what he said. So let me just dive in, in case anyone didn't know... at exactly four hours and 47 seconds into the video, he says 'I will state there has been a max contribution to the mayor's reelection bid from the interests that are tied to the LLC for the single bid put in for this process. And that alone should be enough for this to go back to the market. And I put forth a motion that we reject this bid and put the RFP back into the market.' Congratulations. You just committed a federal offense. You discriminated against me... based on my political choice and use that as the sole basis to disqualify the RFP and as disgusting as that is... the fact that the City now won't get a $10 million investment."

 

Then came the line that would linger over the property for years.

 

“So every time you drive by a vacant site, thank Kyle Becker,” Benge said. “He didn’t want growth in the city. For Mr. Economic Development, you just conducted a masterclass on what not to do… What the hell were y’all thinking?”

 

Ironically, four years later, Apopkans are still driving past the same vacant property, but Becker isn’t the one they're thinking of when they do.

Despite the rejection, Benge's claims of civil rights violations, lawsuits, and the reallocation of money, the project eventually returned, and Benge’s second attempt was successful. The agreement framed the project as part of a larger effort to revitalize downtown Apopka and create a more walkable urban core.

 

The city and CRA also agreed to participate through land conveyances, infrastructure support, and utility impact fee credits.

 

 

One major requirement obligated the developer to submit completed design specifications for the public plaza and trail extensions by July 15, 2024.

According to city staff, those submissions never arrived.

 

The June 3 staff report states that “nearly two years later, the City has received no submittals from the Developer.”

 

Because the deadlines have long since passed, staff recommend issuing a formal Notice of Default while preserving the city’s ability to terminate the agreement entirely.

Under the agreement, the developer would have 30 days to cure the default before the city could terminate the project.

 

And with that, another downtown vision risks joining a growing collection of renderings, conceptual plans, and ceremonial shovels that never quite became reality.

The Station Street saga ultimately became about far more than apartments or a plaza. It became another chapter in Apopka’s decades-long struggle to answer a deceptively simple question: what should downtown Apopka actually become?

 

But perhaps the most important part of the story is that, for the first time in years, the city may finally be stepping back long enough to reassess what downtown Apopka should become before rushing into what it could become next.

 

Mayor Nick Nesta’s administration has already signaled a broader shift toward transparency, earlier public discussions, and a willingness to revisit how major projects are evaluated before deals are finalized. Rather than simply pushing forward another stalled vision, a potential reset of Station Street could give the city an opportunity to rethink the project under fresh leadership, with clearer expectations, stronger accountability, and broader community buy-in.

 

Downtown Apopka may still be unfinished, but unfinished is not the same thing as abandoned. And after decades of plans that never fully materialized, the next chapter may depend less on who can promise the biggest transformation — and more on who can finally deliver one.

 

 

• City staff says required development submissions for Station Street were never received.
• The project originally promised affordable housing, restaurants, retail, and public gathering space.
• Commissioner Kyle Becker publicly criticized the original RFP process and campaign donation ties.
• Developer Tony Benge responded with a fiery public rebuke after the project was initially rejected.
• Mayor Nick Nesta’s administration is signaling a broader reassessment of downtown redevelopment strategy.