Glasgow Montana Retirement/St. Marie (Billings: townhouses, buy, school)

[Robert Deuel]

Originally Posted by little peg

If you are a native northwesternern, I mean before the last 20 years you will adapt to the independant sprit in Montana, otherwise you would be wise to stay on the western side of the state. I love it here but the feeling on outsiders, and rightly so, is they try to change a blessed way of life when they move in, i worry about you when you mentioned HOA, why that's fighting words, yea!

We have a condo in St Marie, what is HOA?

[jimj]

Originally Posted by Robert Deuel

We have a condo in St Marie, what is HOA?

Home Owners Association.

[sshockley]

chowmama---I'm with you on this. I 'grew' up in a mobile home park located between the ex-base and Glasgow, back in the 60s. Then my family 'relocated' back to the base in the early 70s when it had been deactivated and had government contractor jobs out there. I still yearn for the solitude, security and 'openess' of the plains and the folks who are 'hardy and comfortable' enough to live there. I was fortunate enough to 'visit' St Marie back in the early 90's and was 'put up' in one of the condo's that one of my old friends had rented back in the heydays of the 70s. Looking out the back window I could look at the backside of the duplex me and my folks lived in back then.
I currently live in the Denver metro area and over the years have longed for the quiet, relaxed (and yes, BOREDUM) of the seclusion of that area. If I make it to retirement age I will consider buying a place to spend, at least a part of the year, up there. The ONLY drawback, for me, is that my children and grandchildren live here---but, oh, what a GIFT it would be to allow them to see and experience the QUIET peacefulness of Eastern Montana.
thank you for your positive input.

[Copeseticlady]

I just moved from Glasgow to Billings on Feb 19th. Mt family's medical problems have made it nessessary to be closer to a full service hospital, but I do miss the friendliness of Glasgow, Montana. I still remember how a family that I barely knew came and sat with me at the train station so I wouldn't be alone one of the first times I visited Glasgow a few years ago. The people there have touched my heart. So much for the way outsiders are treated badly ... I never experienced that, and i am from NJ.

[619 MCP]

USN Retired, returning from TX. NAS. 1992 Buyer Fighter Squadron Housing escape from Iwakuni, Japan H&HS. 714 Love Angel sighting .
It's getting hot down here, I see you when I get there.

[cramerhillgirl]

Does anyone know if the promised convenience store, etc., in St. Marie is actually going to happen, or is this just R.E. sales hype? I love the idea of the peace and quiet, but I would like to know how far we'd be from a source of basic groceries and gas.

[siobhanlaulu]

I lived at St.Marie from 87 to 93. We moved there when I was 9years of age and moved when I was 15. Growing up there as a child was a unique experience we had the hole place to ourselves. St. Marie had promise at that time there were many plans to develop St. Marie into a viable community. At that time a bowling alley, post office, hair salon, and a cafe existed. The community was slowly growing streets were kept up at that time. To my understanding all of these places I mentioned closed. Boeing owns the airstrip out there and thats about it. I can remember riding my bike on that airstrip. The memories I have of St.Marie I love. The winters like many had said are tough and hot summers, I would't mind raising my children at St. Marie, but I never would want to retire there. The crucial amenities such as a hospital, grocerey store, ect., could be difficult to get to in the dead middle of winter. Oh one more thing I used to love the drive to Glasgow I think of it often when I'm stuck in bumper to bumper traffic here in Seattle.

[Copeseticlady]

I haven't heard of any such amenities going up in St Marie ... I just asked my sources over in Glasgow, which is a scant 17 miles away from St Marie. Glasgow has several gas stations, a small hospital (more like a clinic) 2 supermarkets, a variety of small stores and a Pamida.

[Copeseticlady]

I have recently moved to Billings, Montana from Glasgow ... I also miss the traffic patterns of Glasgow, although it isn't all that bad here in the big city.

[stieh13]

I moved to St. Marie, MT in 1996 from Washington state. At that time there were a whole lot of investers involved offering jobs and enabling you to buy housing. There was a bowling alley, but that was it unless you went to Glascow or Peck for recreation. There were promises of a golf course, gas station and convenience store among many other things. I was buying my own condo and working until all went under and people got screwed. I then moved to Laurel and Billings, MT. The weather was always windy and the winter was hard. I would not move back there for nothing. Yes it is a small community and everyone knows everyone, but there is no growth going on. If you want to just hang out and do nothing and stare at barrin and trashed housing units, then by all means give it a try. I would suggest finding somewhere else.