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1 DOCSOPEN\MU210\317\1012155.v2-2/26/25DOCSOPEN\MU210\317\1012155.v1-2/26/25 DOCSOPEN\MU210\317\1012155.v2-2/26/25 1 DOCSOPEN\MU210\317\1012155.v1-2/26/25 MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING THIS MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING (“MOU”) is made and is effective as of February ___, 2025, by and between the City of Mounds View, a Minnesota municipal corporation (the “City”) and Great White Companies, LLC, a Minnesota limited liability company, and its successors and assigns (“GWC”). The City and GWC may be jointly referred to herein as the “Parties” and each of them, a “Party.” WHEREAS, pursuant to Minnesota Statute § 342.32. subd. 5, a city may “establish, own, and operate a municipal cannabis store subject to the restrictions in this chapter”; and WHEREAS, pursuant to Minnesota Statute § 342.14, subd. 7, the Office of Cannabis Management (“OCM”) “must issue a license to a city or county seeking to establish, own, or operate a single municipal cannabis store authorized under section 342.32, subdivision 5, if the city or county: (1) submits all information required by the office; (2) meets the minimum requirements under section 342.18 ,subd. 3; and (3) pays the applicable application and license fee; and WHEREAS, Minnesota Statute § 342.18, subd. 3 requires that an applicant must include information in their application regarding: “(1) security and record keeping; (2) employee training plan; (3) business plan and financial situation; (4) labor and employment practices; (5) knowledge and experience; and (6) environmental plan;” and WHEREAS, the OCM has released its application guidelines materials, including Appendix B, which provides that “[m]unicipalities may seek to enter into agreements with non- governmental entities to operate a municipal retail cannabis store. These agreements must be disclosed as part of the application process. Depending on how these agreements are structured a non-governmental entity that operates a municipal cannabis retail location subject to an agreement with the municipality may be subject to the application and license limitations in Minnesota Statutes, section 342.185. similarly, depending on the structure of the private partnership and the services provided, employees of the private entity may be subject to background check requirements in Minnesota Statues, section 342.15”; and WHEREAS, the City intends to apply for a municipal license during the OCM’s licensing cycle, which is the only licensing cycle currently scheduled for 2025, that opened on February 18, 2025 and closes on March 14, 2025; and WHEREAS, the City intends to obtain a cannabis retailer license and has determined that it is in the best interest of the City, the use and protection of public dollars, and the health, safety, and wellness of the people of Mounds View, to contract with an independent contractor with experience with retail cannabis business operations to provide services at the single municipal cannabis store that will be operated by the city of Mounds View; ; and WHEREAS, GWC is such a cannabis consultant and desires to provide such services to the City. Commented [JS1]: This intend of including this language is to provide a roadmap as to why the agreement is structured as it is.