5/27/24 Strong Winds Hit Acorn Ridge Motel
27 May 2024 News
PRINCETON, WI, — Acorn Ridge Motel narrowly escaped catastrophe on the evening of Tuesday, May 21. A storm swept in that produced a significant gust of wind, taking down a tree over 60 feet tall and throwing it more than 30 feet away; it bounced off the house and office, settling on the deck. The current managers, Eric and Linda Johnson, reside onsite. They were left shaken, but unharmed. The separate Motel building was untouched and is still up and running. Everyone onsite was safe and no injuries were sustained.
When the new owners, Mae and Mark Wilton, took over the motel earlier this month, the previous owners agreed to stay on the property through the end of the summer to help with the transition of ownership. Eric and Linda were sitting in their living room, watching the news for updates on the severe weather in the area, when they looked out the window and saw a funnel that was pulling water skywards from the ground and heading their way. They heard a loud boom immediately after and the entire house shook.
“We are very grateful that nobody was hurt during the incident,” stated Mark Wilton, owner of Acorn Ridge Motel. “5 or 10 feet one way and the outcome could have been far worse”.
The strong winds broke off an approximately 4-foot-diameter tree limb that was thrown onto the house, causing damage to the roof and interior kitchen wall. The tree limb landed on the deck and Eric’s truck. Additional branches were broken off and strewn across the property. The iconic Acorn Ridge Motel neon sign was left unscathed and fully operational.
The current and previous owners were all relieved that no one was hurt in the wake of the storms and that all damage done to the property is fixable. The motel is fully functioning and no utilities were damaged. A quick response from Al’s Extreme Tree Service meant they were onsite first thing Wednesday morning cleaning up all of the tree debris scattered throughout the property.
Acorn Ridge Motel is located between Green Lake and Princeton near the western shores of Big Green Lake. The motel boasts 14 ground-level clean and spacious rooms with amenities such as high-speed internet access, flat-screen TVs, and in-room coffee makers. Acorn Ridge is affordably priced, open year-round, and located near golf courses, restaurants, antique shops, shopping districts, flea markets, and recreation shops.
For more information, visit https://acornridgemotel.com, Acorn Ridge Motel social media pages @acornridgemotel, or call 920-295-6533.
Photos taken by Mae Wilton.
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