When the Air Force base was decommissioned, the on-base housing was purchased and offered for sale to private individuals.

Homes which had housed thousands of military personnel when the base was in operation were briefly promoted as condominiums for retirees.

The runway remains in use as Glasgow Industrial Airport (FAA LID: 07MT), a test site for Boeing aircraft.

Beginning in 2012 the community became embroiled in a series of legal and political conflicts with an anti-government group called the "Citizens Action Committee of Valley County," part of the larger Sovereign Citizen movement, with a similar philosophy to that of the Montana Freemen.

The group intended to take ownership of the community though buying and seizing up a large amount of mostly vacant properties though bogus liens and litigation, while ostensibly planning a handful of investment schemes to redevelop them.

The situation led to a number of St. Marie property owners being sued and a community backlash against the group followed.

St. Marie has gained some interest from ghost town enthusiasts and back road explorers in recent years for its uniquely Atomic Age appeal, being much more intact and modern than most vacated locales and containing a fair number of larger buildings.