OTTAWA COUNTY, Mich. — An Ottawa County airport could see its runway close in the fall if voters do not pass an upcoming millage.
The Park Township Airport, built in 1937, has seen its infrastructure deteriorate over the years. A proposed tax of .185 mills would allow for upgrades, including a repaved runway.
If the millage fails, the runway would be removed by Oct. 1, prohibiting planes from coming in or out.
Every time an airport closes, there are fewer people interested in flying, said Lt. Glen Houting, who leads the local Civil Air Patrol unit. The U.S. Air Force Auxiliary trains young people and seniors in aerospace and emergency response services.
"Although we can still do our training, there's nothing like the hands-on experience of touching an airplane and seeing them take off and land as we're doing our drills on the tarmac," Houting said.
Others, like Ralph Hensley, don't think the money is worth spending, given the limited number of people who use the runway. In 2019, 63 pilots from 19 different states logged visits to the airport.
"I think the township tax millage would be better spent on pure recreation, more splash pads, more basketball, soccer fields...all those types of things that the township really wants to have," said Hensley, who lives in a nearby neighborhood and served on the Airport Vision Committee.
The .185 mill would cost the owner of a home with a taxable value of $181,816 slightly more than $33 a year for 10 years.
In addition to the new runway, the township is also planning to construct an AirPark, which would include an aviation museum.
If the millage fails, the board has noted that other aviation activities, like RC planes and parachuting, will still be possible at the airport, Township Manager Howard Fink said.
"This has been a divisive issue," Fink said. "My hope is that whatever the people decide, it ends up that we move forward and we can move on and come back together as a community."
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