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Planned White Earth Nation dispensary at 926 Central raises tax, jurisdiction questions for East Grand Forks
Summary
City staff told the council White Earth Nation is pursuing the former Burger King site at 926 Central Ave NW for a cannabis retail store under a May 2025 tribal compact that may allow tribal licensing off tribal land; staff flagged unresolved questions about whether such stores count against local caps and how sales/property taxes apply.
City staff reported to the East Grand Forks City Council that building-permit applications tied to the former Burger King at 926 Central Avenue NW indicate White Earth Nation seeks to open a cannabis retail store there, a development that raises jurisdictional and tax questions under a tribal compact signed with the state in May 2025.
What staff said: "The tribal compact allows the tribe to essentially issue its own licenses to operate cannabis retail," city staff member Reed Hutton said, explaining the compact permits tribes to license retail locations and to operate off tribally regulated land. Because of that, staff said the city’s previously adopted local cap on the number of retail cannabis stores (two) likely does not bind tribal-licensed stores in the same way as state-licensed businesses.
Taxation and regulatory uncertainty: staff highlighted a key ambiguity: the tribal compact language suggests tribally regulated off-tribal-land dispensaries are not subject to state or local sales or use taxes, while the Office of Cannabis Management’s local government guidance appears to state the opposite. "We’ve sent that question to the Office of Cannabis Management and haven’t gotten a clear answer back yet," Hutton said. Staff also said the compact is silent on property-tax status for tribally regulated, for-profit operations on non-tribal land and that the city believes the property will be subject to property tax but is seeking confirmation.
Buffers and site screening: staff said the proposed site at 926 Central Avenue appears to satisfy local buffer requirements (city buffers: 600 feet from schools, 350 feet from parks/daycare/residential treatment), and the compact references the state’s maximum buffers (1,000 feet from schools, 500 feet from parks) and defers to local regulation when that standard is more restrictive.
Limits and wider implications: staff cautioned that tribal compacts generally do not delineate geographic exclusivity and that multiple tribes could theoretically open stores in the same municipality under their compacts. The compact limits each tribe to eight stores statewide, no more than one per municipality and no more than three per county, but staff said the city has limited tools to block a tribal license from coming into town if the compact allows it.
Next steps: staff said two locally preliminarily approved applicants (downtown and highway locations) remain in the state licensing process and that when licensees apply for site registration the Office of Cannabis Management will notify the city for a full local zoning and compliance review. The city is awaiting written clarification from the Office of Cannabis Management about tax treatment and property-tax implications for tribal retailers.
