The 133-acre (54 ha) grounds contain 35 buildings, a horse racing track, grandstands, and the Four Seasons Arena—multi-purpose sports and exhibition arena.

[2] The site is the host of the Montana State Fair as well as agricultural shows, rodeos, basketball tournaments, and funfairs.

[3] In 1939, the Montana State Fair, which had previously been held in Helena, permanently moved to Great Falls.

In 1988, Cascade County signed an agreement under which the city of Great Falls took over management of the fairgrounds and Four Seasons Arena.

[9] The cooling system under the practice ice at Four Seasons Arena failed in April 2003,[10] and a consultant estimated the cost of repairs at $450,000.

[14] Cascade County also agreed to subsidize the fairgrounds and Four Seasons Arena by $750,000 a year, and pay the wages of all SMG employees operating the facilities.

[14] In 2009, Cascade County declined to renew SMG's contract, concluding it had learned enough to manage the fairgrounds and arena on its own.

The study, conducted by Markin Consulting, disclosed that the race track grandstand's concrete foundation was crumbling, the livestock pavilion's sheet metal walls were rusting, the horse barns were poorly ventilated and lit, and Four Seasons Arena suffered from poor acoustics and limited seating.