Cannabis sales are anticipated to begin in Minnesota by spring or early summer of 2025. This new market will open opportunities for businesses to engage in cultivation, manufacturing, and retail, under a comprehensive framework designed to ensure compliance and safety.

In this episode of the Larkin Hoffman Real Estate Podcast, Bill Griffith sat down with Doug Junker, the firm's municipal licensing specialist, to discuss the evolving landscape of the cannabis market and its regulatory compliance in Minnesota. They dive into the many nuances of the cannabis licensing process and the challenges posed by regulatory requirements for cultivators, manufacturers, and retailers, offering valuable insights for businesses preparing to enter the cannabis market.

Doug Junker transitioned from a 20-year tenure as a license examiner for the City of Bloomington to join Larkin Hoffman and brings with him a wealth of insight into the intricacies of securing licenses. This knowledge renders him an invaluable resource and consultant for businesses, municipalities, and legal professionals seeking assistance or clarity on diverse licensing issues.

Doug assists businesses navigating the myriad of challenges they encounter when seeking permits and licenses for their operations. He provides guidance on business planning, floor planning, licensing applications, compliance and site inspections to ensure alignment with city regulations.

Bill Griffith advises local and national clients on legal and policy issues affecting land use, zoning, real estate, environmental review, municipal law, regulatory matters and government relations. He has been legal counsel to Mall of America in all its phases, and serves as city attorney for the city of Columbus. He is a trusted advisor on real estate development and public funding for both private clients and municipalities.

There is a simple formula that is used to determine how much you owe in property taxes, however if your property is valued incorrectly, you could be overpaying.  Tim Rye and Adam Pabarcus from our property tax appeals team recently sat down with Bill Griffith to discuss the property tax appeals process and to highlight the benefit of a quick periodic review to determine if your tax assessment is fair.   

In this episode of The Larkin Hoffman Real Estate Podcast, Tim also shares insights regarding his team’s recent victory in the Minnesota Supreme Court and its decision to require tax assessors to exclude the airport’s concession fees from rent-based valuations for property tax purposes. The case offers a flight plan to lower taxes at many of the nation’s transportation hubs and underscores the importance for all taxpayers to exclude business value from taxable property value. In this episode, Tim details the magnitude of the Minnesota Supreme Court’s decision regarding concession fees and how it could influence the results of future property tax appeals.

Part Three: Reforming Real Estate: From Racial Covenants to Just Deeds

In the most recent episodes of The Larkin Hoffman Real Estate Podcast, ⁠Bill Griffith⁠ had the privilege of sitting down with three pioneering Black women working for the City of Bloomington, Minnesota. Women, and Black women in particular, have historically been excluded from the real estate profession causing their representation in the industry to be notably low. However, in Bloomington things are changing. In recent years, the city added three women of color to its leadership team: Karla Henderson, Community Development Director; Aarica Coleman, Housing and Redevelopment Authority Administrator; and Faith Jackson, Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer. Bill was honored to have the opportunity to talk with them about this important topic.  As their conversation unfolded, it quickly became clear that the three women had a lot to share and the conversation evolved into the three-part mini series.

Part Two: Breaking Ground: The Roots of Racism in Real Estate

In the most recent episodes of The Larkin Hoffman Real Estate Podcast, Bill Griffith had the privilege of sitting down with three pioneering Black women working for the City of Bloomington, Minnesota. Women, and Black women in particular, have historically been excluded from the real estate profession causing their representation in the industry to be notably low. However, in Bloomington things are changing. In recent years, the city added three women of color to its leadership team: Karla Henderson, Community Development Director; Aarica Coleman, Housing and Redevelopment Authority Administrator; and Faith Jackson, Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer. Bill was honored to have the opportunity to talk with them about this important topic.  As their conversation unfolded, it quickly became clear that the three women had a lot to share and the conversation evolved into the three-part mini series.

Part One: Lifting Each Other Up:  The Power of Mutual Support

In the most recent episodes of The Larkin Hoffman Real Estate Podcast, ⁠Bill Griffith⁠ had the privilege of sitting down with three pioneering Black women working for the City of Bloomington, Minnesota. Women, and Black women in particular, have historically been excluded from the real estate profession causing their representation in the industry to be notably low. However, in Bloomington things are changing. In recent years, the city added three women of color to its leadership team: Karla Henderson, Community Development Director; Aarica Coleman, Housing and Redevelopment Authority Administrator; and Faith Jackson, Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer. Bill was honored to have the opportunity to talk with them about this important topic.  As their conversation unfolded, it quickly became clear that the three women had a lot to share and the conversation evolved into the three-part mini series.

Stay Tuned for our latest episode of The Larkin Hoffman

Women, and Black women in particular, have historically been excluded from the real estate profession causing their representation in the industry to be notably low. In Bloomington, however, things are changing. In recent years, the city added three women of color to its leadership team, Karla Henderson, Community Development Director; Aarica Coleman, Housing and Redevelopment Authority Administrator; and Faith Jackson, Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer.

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In this episode of The Larkin Hoffman Real Estate Podcast, Megan Rogers shares her experience sitting down with Ra'eesa Motala, Vice President of Rokos Advisors, at a special event honoring the women who are breaking down barriers in the traditionally male-dominated field of commercial real estate.  

Megan had the opportunity to engage in a fireside chat with Ra'eesa, who was the keynote honoree at the annual Bisnow's Minneapolis Women Leading Real Estate event. Ra'eesa discussed her journey in the real estate brokerage industry and emphasized the invaluable support she received from mentors along the way. She encouraged other women aspiring to build their careers in commercial real estate to seek out strong mentors and embrace the community of women in the field who are ready to assist and uplift each other.

Ra'eesa dedicates a significant amount of her time to volunteering. She serves as a Co-Chair of the Real Estate Diversity Initiative (REDI) program, which focuses on empowering Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) professionals and women in various real estate sectors through a 12-part curriculum and cohort experience.  Additionally, Ra'eesa mentors young women who have experienced harassment and sexual assault in the workplace, helping them navigate towards safer environments.

During the event, Ra'eesa also highlighted the impact of her greatest mentor, Helen Brooks, a trailblazer in commercial real estate. Helen was the sole woman involved in the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors during the 1960s and 1970s, and she paved the way for other women in the industry.

The conversation concluded and the event moved to recognize a group of local women trailblazers in commercial real estate. The 12 women recognized were Ra’eesa Motala, Kara Frank (Owner, Twin Realty Investment Co), Anne Olson (COO, Centerspace Homes), Jaclyn May, (Executive Director, Cushman & Wakefield), Sheri Brezinka (Regional Director, U.S. Green Building Council),  Angela Ledding (Head of Underwriting, PACE Loan Group), Sonja Dusil (Senior Vice President Commercial Development, United Properties), Shannon Rusk (SVP, Development, Oppidan), Emily Nicoll (SVP, CBRE), Jessica Welk (General Counsel, Schafer Richardson), Amanda Leathers (Investment Sales Associate, Upland), and Maureen Michallski (Vice President of Real Estate Development, Ryan Companies).

Megan Rogers advises and represents businesses, developers, and property owners seeking favorable government approvals including licensing, zoning, and other regulatory matters. She provides guidance on bond financing for multifamily projects and real estate transactions including residential and commercial sales and leases, easement agreements, title registrations, and lot splits. Megan also assists clients and industry groups in seeking favorable determinations from state agencies and licensing boards.

In this episode of The Larkin Hoffman Real Estate Podcast, ⁠Megan Rogers⁠ takes the opportunity to recap a panel discussion she moderated at Bisnow’s Twin Cities Market outlook recorded late last year.  It was an engaging conversation with insight from a range of leaders in the Twin Cities Real Estate and Development Market. 

The panel discussed commercial real estate conditions, obstacles and and where Minneapolis sits in comparison to its competition. Megan was joined on the panel by Rob Bader, President, Bader Development; Harrison Wagenseil, Managing Director, Investment Sales/Capital Markets, Transwestern; Erin Fitzgerald, Senior Director, JLL; Tom Shaver, Partner, Inland Development Partners; and Anna Maria Kowalik, Sr VP - Director of Business Development, Inland Green Capital.

Megan Rogers advises and represents businesses, developers, and property owners seeking favorable government approvals including licensing, zoning, and other regulatory matters. She also provides guidance on bond financing for multifamily projects and real estate transactions including residential and commercial sales and leases, easement agreements, title registrations, and lot splits.

Megan Rogers recently had the opportunity to talk with developer Johnny Opara, President and CEO of JO Cos., a real estate development company in the Twin Cities that specializes in developing high-quality, affordable multifamily housing. Johnny Opara took an unusual path to starting JO Cos and his career as a developer but as a first-time developer, he was able to get the St. Paul Housing and Redevelopment Authority to unanimously approved bond financing for construction of The Hollows in the Payne-Phalen area of St Paul. Today, the 62-unit workforce housing development is complete with affordable units for low-income renters.

For this episode of The Larkin Hoffman Real Estate Podcast, Johnny and Megan talk about his decision to move from corporate America into the real estate development world; what he’s building now; and what he wants to build in the future.

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Megan Rogers advises and represents businesses, developers, and property owners seeking favorable government approvals including licensing, zoning, and other regulatory matters. She also provides guidance on bond financing for multifamily projects and real estate transactions including residential and commercial sales and leases, easement agreements, title registrations, and lot splits. Megan advises clients and industry groups seeking favorable determinations from state agencies and licensing boards.

Contact Megan Rogers at [email protected].

On February 1st, the Federal Reserve raised interest rates by another quarter-point. This first rate hike of 2023 follows seven interest rate hikes in 2022. With the rising interest rates in mind, Bill Griffith sat down with a panel of real estate and construction industry leaders last fall at Bisnow’s Twin Cities Multifamily Market Overview to discuss the effect of rising interest rates on their business.

In this episode of The Larkin Hoffman Real Estate Podcast, Bill takes the opportunity to review the discussion he moderated and highlight some of the trends, opportunities and forecasts for the Twin Cities construction and real estate markets.

Bill discussed the effect of rising interest rates on their business with Traci Thomas, COO of Doran Companies; Sargent Johnson, Managing Director at Hines; Brady Pollard, Vice President - Preconstruction Services Director at JE Dunn Construction; and Johnny Opara, President and CEO of JO Companies.

Bill Griffith advises local and national clients on legal and policy issues affecting land use, zoning, real estate, environmental review, municipal law, regulatory matters and government relations. He has been legal counsel to Mall of America in all its phases, and serves as city attorney for the city of Columbus. He is a trusted advisor on real estate development and public funding for both private clients and municipalities.

Contact Bill Griffith at [email protected]