Somewhere around 2009-2013, They used that area where that lil tower shack is, for tractor pulls, and tower was for announcers. They also used that are for fireworks. My Uncle is from that area. I lived 6 miles from there from 2008 to 2014. The tractor pulls and fireworks were things I know of from when I lived near there.
Wow very cool, I didn’t know this. I guess Nartron still owns the building but doesn’t do anything with it, glad to see the land at least being used in the more recent past
My uncle used to live there, too. He passed away in 1983. During one of my countless visits I got to attend one of those fireworks displays at the airport. It was fantastic!
I grew up just to the east over the hill on 210th, was active AP in 70's and 80's. Terrible shame what has happened to it. Know a bit of the history, Jim Miller built the entire complex, the dam used to produce power that ran the AP and also sent to the factory on 210th just nort of US 10. There was also a park below the dam that was washed out in the fall of 1986 that flooded much of the area down the Muskegon River. At one time there was air mail service and jet service, the metal sign shape was for the airlines, I think was the McDonald/Douglass emblem. The amblem was also on the doors that were smashed out on hangar/control tower, and maintenance buildings. Miller Industries is gone, last I knew the AP is part of Narton industries and the factory on 210th was part of Tubelite, but think was sold to a company in Grand Rapids a few yrs ago. The building wing to the north of the maintenance building and covered with green steel siding were open T-hangars and closed in when Nartron bought it. The bldg with old truck was new engineering office building in 80's, but if I remember something with contractor and failing inspection prevented use. I'm sure others that have better memory and more recent information will post in time 👍
My uncle lived there since before the airport was built. It used to be a thriving, bustling GA airport and even had scheduled airline service for a while in the 60s. As I understand it, Jim Miller built the impressive administration building to show off what is extruding business (Miller Industries) was capable of. I guess he liked the location being at the intersection of two major highways. He would fly in prospective clients to the airport and point to his terminal building. It was used for receptions, concerts, etc. and had a state of the art kitchen. When Miller sold the business and moved away, he offered to sell the airport to the city for a $1.00 if they would continue to use it for an airport. They weren't interested. He ended up selling the airport to Norman Rautiola, who apparently was only interested in using the buildings for storage and metal machining. It's sad.
If you were to continue driving north past the airport and turned at the first left, you would drive past Jim Miller's former residence. He built a miniature railroad on his property and called it the "Leprechaun Line." I guess he could take kids for rides on it.
The small dam south of the airport actually contains the entire flow of the Hersey River. It is listed among the dams destined for demolition as part of the movement to restore the river to its original form. There was another dam in Reed City that had a large pond behind it. That dam collapsed years ago and was never rebuilt. In fact, the remnants of the dam were only fairly recently removed.
Also nice video. Even if it was an unexpected one. I've driven down that road (also nick named airport rd) so many times and never stopped to check it out.
Somewhere around 2009-2013, They used that area where that lil tower shack is, for tractor pulls, and tower was for announcers. They also used that are for fireworks. My Uncle is from that area. I lived 6 miles from there from 2008 to 2014. The tractor pulls and fireworks were things I know of from when I lived near there.
Wow very cool, I didn’t know this. I guess Nartron still owns the building but doesn’t do anything with it, glad to see the land at least being used in the more recent past
My uncle used to live there, too. He passed away in 1983. During one of my countless visits I got to attend one of those fireworks displays at the airport. It was fantastic!
I grew up just to the east over the hill on 210th, was active AP in 70's and 80's. Terrible shame what has happened to it. Know a bit of the history, Jim Miller built the entire complex, the dam used to produce power that ran the AP and also sent to the factory on 210th just nort of US 10. There was also a park below the dam that was washed out in the fall of 1986 that flooded much of the area down the Muskegon River. At one time there was air mail service and jet service, the metal sign shape was for the airlines, I think was the McDonald/Douglass emblem. The amblem was also on the doors that were smashed out on hangar/control tower, and maintenance buildings. Miller Industries is gone, last I knew the AP is part of Narton industries and the factory on 210th was part of Tubelite, but think was sold to a company in Grand Rapids a few yrs ago.
The building wing to the north of the maintenance building and covered with green steel siding were open T-hangars and closed in when Nartron bought it. The bldg with old truck was new engineering office building in 80's, but if I remember something with contractor and failing inspection prevented use. I'm sure others that have better memory and more recent information will post in time 👍
I spent a lot of time just over the hill to the east in the 60s & 70s. My uncle was Woody Lehr and he lived on Mackinaw Trail.
My uncle lived there since before the airport was built. It used to be a thriving, bustling GA airport and even had scheduled airline service for a while in the 60s. As I understand it, Jim Miller built the impressive administration building to show off what is extruding business (Miller Industries) was capable of. I guess he liked the location being at the intersection of two major highways. He would fly in prospective clients to the airport and point to his terminal building. It was used for receptions, concerts, etc. and had a state of the art kitchen. When Miller sold the business and moved away, he offered to sell the airport to the city for a $1.00 if they would continue to use it for an airport. They weren't interested. He ended up selling the airport to Norman Rautiola, who apparently was only interested in using the buildings for storage and metal machining. It's sad.
If you were to continue driving north past the airport and turned at the first left, you would drive past Jim Miller's former residence. He built a miniature railroad on his property and called it the "Leprechaun Line." I guess he could take kids for rides on it.
The small dam south of the airport actually contains the entire flow of the Hersey River. It is listed among the dams destined for demolition as part of the movement to restore the river to its original form. There was another dam in Reed City that had a large pond behind it. That dam collapsed years ago and was never rebuilt. In fact, the remnants of the dam were only fairly recently removed.
Also nice video. Even if it was an unexpected one. I've driven down that road (also nick named airport rd) so many times and never stopped to check it out.