Tucked quietly on the edge of town, bordered by a row of trees, Roben Hood Airport sits, peacefully on the edge of Big Rapids.

The airport is used daily for everything from business meetings to pleasure flights, from commuting to flying lessons.

That usage is growing, some community leaders say, to the benefit of the entire region.

Interest in Roben Hood is climbing, something Airport Manager Mike Lafferty and others in the city believe will have a positive impact on the entire community.

There are three kinds of economic impact attributed to airports: direct, indirect and induced.

Direct impact is the money spent at the airport. Indirect impact is money spent in the community by people who come to the airport — at restaurants, gas stations, hotels — and induced impact is money spent in the community by the airport itself — people hired in town or purchase of parts, for example.

The more traffic the airport sees, the more people who visit and infuse money into the local economy. For example, at least one man flies up from Chicago to play golf at Tullymore, Lafferty said.

At least one flight every two weeks into Roben Hood is a hunter traveling to the Sanctuary, a high-fence whitetail deer ranch, said Dan Rosman, ranch manager.

“Right now, as tough as it is to fly commercial, a lot of them call and say they’re getting their own jet (and ask where can they land). ... That makes it more convenient,” Rosman said. “We can have them here in within 15 minutes of picking the fellows up instead of going down to Grand Rapids.”

The Sanctuary isn’t the only business using Roben Hood. Local pilots have increased their numbers in the past few years, and many of the pilots at Roben Hood are active. The number of planes stored at the airport has increased in the last 12 years, from three up to 18.

“It’s a very active airport, when you look at the percentage of pilots who fly,” Lafferty said. “We have a really high percentage here. Of the 18, only one doesn’t fly regularly.”

There are other ways to measure success. From January to September, the courtesy car was used 79 percent more than the same time frame in 2006; during that same period, sales of 100LL airplane fuel rose 30 percent. If the sales of jet fuel — which was not available locally until this year — are included with 100LL, fuel sales in gallons are up 74 percent.

“The intention of hiring Colt (Aviation) to run the airport is to grow the airport, which we’re doing, and the city has (funded) us with a reducing subsidy,” Lafferty said. “We feel we have been very successful. ... General aviation — the kind of traffic we handle — is down between 2 and 13 percent, depending on what you read, because of the cost of fuel. We’re up 30 percent in general aviation with a cost increase of 30 percent.”

Part of that growth is easily traceable to the addition of Jet A fuel sales.

“We’ve developed an interesting business here and that’s helicopters,” Lafferty said.

For example, medical helicopters flying between Traverse City and Grand Rapids stop for fuel locally because the price is very competitive.

“We’re a popular destination for other flight schools’ solo flights and cross-country flights,” Lafferty said.

Those new connections with other types of aircraft, other flight schools and other airports is a step towards regionalization.

“It’s a local airport but has kind of a regional possibility,” said Marty Bledsoe, an active pilot and member of the Airport Advisory Council. “Sometimes it’s nice to start a trip, if you can, from a business perspective by coming and going out of a regional airport.”

Another step toward regionalization will be the 700-foot runway expansion now in the planning process. The extra length would allow mid-sized jets to land at Roben Hood and expand the potential number of planes bringing people to the area and buying fuel here.

For starters, it would bring more of the Sanctuary hunters through Big Rapids instead of Grand Rapids.

“To be honest, (the runway) is not quite long enough for some of the planes folks come in on,” Rosman said. “From August to Dec. 15, we’d average at least one plane a week if it were longer. It would make a lot of difference for us and our clients.”

Before the runway expansion can take place, however, other improvements must be completed. The airport must acquire an aviation easement — the purchase of air space over the Big Rapids Township Industrial Park to ensure no buildings are constructed that interfere with the planes’ glide path. Work also includes the construction of 10 T-hangars, which will probably go up in the spring.

Recent improvements, such as repainting the stripes and replacing runway lighting, also make a difference to the airport.

The 19,000 small airports in the country play a larger role than people might expect in that system.

“Airports like ours have done a lot to contribute to the national transportation system. Pilots who become commercial pilots in the largest airports generally started in small airports like ours. Military pilots (often develop their interest in flying in small airports),” Bledsoe said.

Getting people started in flying is another growing trend at Roben Hood. Flying lessons have increased to the point where a seven-week ground school now is offered. Last year, three students received their pilot’s licenses and nine completed their first solo flights, which marks a half-way point in training.

Rosman is a past student of the flight school at Roben Hood. He earned his pilot’s license three years ago and has flown to a number of small airports in Michigan.

The Big Rapids airport is one of the better-maintained facilities he’s seen.

“They really pride themselves when planes land of making people feel right at home,” Rosman said.