Hortonville is a growing village with modern homes and rural appeal
Hortonville is a small village of about 3,000 people, where outdoor recreation, a growing collection of modern homes and proximity to a larger city are its biggest draws. Employers and retail shopping are elsewhere, leaving Hortonville quiet and residential. "It's great being on the outskirts for that small-town vibe, but not too far from where everything is happening in the city," says Ashley Warning, a Realtor with Keller Williams Fox Cities who has lived in Hortonville for 15 years. "We're just a 15-minute drive to Appleton." While the community is small by many standards, the population has increased in every census since 1940. The past few decades have brought especially steady growth, partly due to improved schools, new homes and a desire to get out of the city. "New subdivisions are going up all the time. Including a few currently in the works," Warning says.
New subdivisions offer modern styles and higher price tags
Hortonville has a wide range of housing prices. "You can go from being outside of a $200,000 older home to a $1.5 million new build in a two-minute drive," Warning says. Close to the center of Hortonville are Cape Cods, Victorian cottages and bungalows that range from $160,000 to $270,000. The older homes are among the least expensive in the area and rarely go on the market. "We have a lot of one-owner residences and owners who have no reason to leave those homes," Warning says. "They've paid off their mortgage and know and love the area." To make up for the area's housing demand, which Warning describes as drastic, new subdivisions of Colonial Revivals, New Traditional homes, ramblers and Modern Craftsman are built around the village's outer edges. The newer homes sell between $300,000 and $1 million, with plots of land priced between $40,000 and $100,000.
Outdoor recreation is a big part of the community
Black Otter Lake was made by flooding the Black Otter Creek in the mid-1800s and is now the county's only lake with public access. It's a hub for kayaking, canoeing and fishing. Otto Miller Sports Complex has five baseball and softball diamonds for different ages and levels, and Miller Park has a playground and courts for tennis, basketball and pickleball. Wiouwash State Trail is an in-progress multi-use trail, 45 miles long and expanding. It's used year-round by cyclists, joggers, snowmobilers and horseback riders.
A single campus for all levels has expanding facilities
Children first attend Hortonville Elementary School, rated B by Niche. Hortonville Middle School is rated B-plus, and Hortonville High School earns a B. The three schools share one large campus, which is expanding with new facilities. "The school district has been growing its sports programs and fields," Warning says. "There is a very new football field, and tennis courts are currently under construction."
Bethlehem Lutheran School is associated with the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod, a church in Hortonville. It is one of many private schools under the Fox Valley Lutheran Schools umbrella.
A newly built highway eases traffic and connects to nearby cities
Wisconsin Highway 15 heads about 13 miles southeast to Appleton and 12 miles northwest to New London. "It was finished just last year and has removed so much traffic from the area," Warning says. "We had anywhere between 80,000 and 120,000 cars coming through the main street of Hortonville each day, and all of that now goes to the highway." Appleton International Airport, ThedaCare Regional Medical Center – Appleton and Ascension NE Wisconsin – St. Elizabeth Hospital are in the nearby city.
Essentials are close by, with more shopping in New London
Main Street has a bank, a post office, fast-food chains and auto stores. A small collection of restaurants and bars includes Otter Creek Sports Bar & Grill and Charlie's Drive-In. Black Otter Supper Club is a family owned steak house that also specializes in seafood. Gilbert's Sentry Foods is the local grocery store. Aldi, Walmart, Festival Foods and other national brands are in New London.
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Written By
Heather Haggerty
