HORTONVILLE, Wis. — A new Wisconsin Highway 15 bypass is taking drivers between Greenville and New London around the community of about 3,000 people.
Combined with other improvement plans for downtown, Grace Abitz said she doesn’t think the change will have a negative impact on the business. Abitz owns Alley Cat Coffeehouse alongside Julie Jarvis.
“We have a variety of customers,” she said. “We have parents dropping their kids off at school. We have professionals heading to New London. We have people who are retired who just grabbing coffees and running their errands.”
The new highway segment has moved truck traffic off Main Street, where the coffeehouse is located.
“I think it can really be a new chapter of growing our business,” she said. “We’re almost seven years old as it is and I think with the bypass happening we can focus on making this downtown are welcoming and a place you want to stop and spend time and check out other retail spaces. The atmosphere on Main Street will be nice and calm. I’m excited for it.”
The highway project has been in the works for decades, including more than two years of construction.
Hortonville Village Administrator Nathan Treadwell said the change in traffic is designed to address safety and crashes in the community.
Completion will also allow the village to move ahead with some of its community planning — including the downtown area revitalization.
“The initial plans are to keep the parking down there, expand the sidewalks and shrink the driving lanes to allow for outdoor seating, pedestrian-friendly walkways and just kind if revitalizing that area,” Treadwell said.
While some businesses have expressed concern over the traffic shift from the bypass, Treadwell said the way people find establishments has changed over the years.
“It’s definitely scary for the business owners, but people’s habits nowadays are a lot different than they use to be,” he said. “They don’t see something on the side of the road and stop as much anymore. A lot of times it’s googling where the closest things are or going to see what restaurants are near me. People like to try new things and that’s how they do it, through their phones nowadays rather than just driving around.”
Abitz, who is also a village trustee, said the new four-lane highway may help people find Alley Cat and others.
“The commute from Appleton/Greenville to here, it feels so much safer,” she said. “I think it will really draw people this way.”