Is Mound MN a Good Place to Live?

by Tiffany Beitler

A quick snapshot: Mound is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. The population is 9,480. Mound is the birthplace of the Tonka truck, named after Lake Minnetonka. The Tonka Toys headquarters was originally in Mound, but moved to facilitate material deliveries. Mound is about twenty miles west of downtown Minneapolis, the county seat.

Cooks Bay on Lake Minnetonka in Mound, MN — Mound is one of several cities that has Lake Minnetonka lakeshore and beaches.

Living in Mound, MN

I grew up in Mound and have lived in the area for the majority of my life. I’ve lived in Minneapolis, Blaine, Orono and even spent a college semester in London but I keep coming back to Mound. Here’s why.

Lake Minnetonka.

Mound is wrapped around the upper lake of Lake Minnetonka. I grew up on Cooks Bay and every activity in the summer was centered around the lake. Meeting friends on waverunners, boating, wakeboarding, waterskiing, you name it. Even if you didn’t live on the lake, you could hitch a ride on someone’s boat to spend the day on the lake.

Surfside Park.

The beach at Surfside Park is a huge draw. The park features a boat launch, beach, playground, rentable community building, fishing pier and picknicking area. Spend summer evenings here listening to live music, playing volleyball or just looking at the beautiful water. The Surfside Park Depot is a popular community building available for celebrations such as grad parties, birthdays and showers.

The Highly-Rated Westonka School District.

It’s entirely possible that I’m biased because I am an alumnus of Westonka (Go Whitehawks!) but Westonka Public Schools are always ranked among the top school districts in the state, according to data recently released by ranking and review website Niche. The teachers are absolutely amazing–I still keep in touch with some of my teachers from high school because they made an impact on me.
Here are the 2021 ratings:

2021 Westonka Public School District Rankings from Niche.

Smaller School Feel with Big Opportunities.

With 2,447 total students and a student-to-teacher ratio of 17:1, students get the attention they deserve from teachers, the ability to get to know each one of their classmates and make a name for themselves and the opportunity to participate in numerous clubs, sports and extra-curricular activities. This is my favorite thing about the Mound Westonka schools – I was able to be in MadJazz, Popsingers Show Choir, play tennis, softball and gymnastics and be elected to student senate and National Honor Society–to name a few. You really have the opportunity to shine at Westonka and I have the absolute best memories from being in a ton of activities.
One thing to note is that, at this time, there is no Spanish (or other language) immersion offered which I know is important to some families.

Small Town Feel.

With a population of 9,480, Mound is a smaller community than some of the other cities on Lake Minnetonka. It’s a little quieter, less flashy, there’s not a bustling main street lined with restaurants and retail–it’s more residential than Wayzata and Excelsior.

Mound MN Real Estate

There’s something for everyone! There is a wide range of homes in the Mound area from large houses with lakeshore to modest homes more inland. View Mound MN homes for sale, average sales price, median sales price, recently sold listings, demographics and more on this Mound, MN Neighborhood Overview.