Cannabis Real Estate Deep Dive

Lauren Fontein, Co-Founder of The Artist Tree, began her professional career as a corporate lawyer in Los Angeles. She transitioned to the cannabis industry in 2009 when she founded a cannabis edible manufacturing company. From 2009 to 2017, she headed operations and supplied edibles to over 100 medical dispensaries in the Los Angeles area. Lauren concurrently worked as legal counsel for medical dispensaries owned by brothers Avi Kahan and Mitchell Kahan. In 2018, Lauren partnered with Avi, Mitch, and Aviv Halimi to create The Artist Tree brand for the purpose of obtaining a consumption lounge and retail licenses in the city of West Hollywood. She is intricately involved in the day-to-day operations of all Artist Tree locations. She serves as the company’s Chief Compliance Officer, handles community outreach, and works on marketing campaigns. She also oversees The Artist Tree’s art program, using art as a voice for positive change and as a way to bring people together. In addition, she works on The Artist Tree’s expansion team, preparing license applications and working with local cities and counties to successfully obtain cannabis retail licenses in new jurisdictions. Lauren graduated with a B.A. in Psychology from Dartmouth College (2002) and a J.D. from UCLA School of Law (2007).

Timeka Drew is an operating social equity license holder and seasoned cannabis industry executive. She is a part of the top 200 Phase 3, Round 1 social equity retail storefront applicants in LA and looks forward to opening her store in her community plan area of Southeast Los Angeles soon. Timeka is the founder and CEO of Biko, a California cannabis brand focused on producing luxurious, effective products produced at her social equity manufacturing facility in DTLA. She sits on the Board of the Cannabis Equity Retailers Association (CERA) and Social Equity LA. She is a member of the Equity Trade Certification (ETC) Leadership Coalition, the ETC Policy Committee, and the Social Equity Owners and Workers Association (SEOWA). She entered the cannabis industry in the early 2000’s as a medical patient and advocate. She currently serves as the Chief Growth Officer of award-winning, vertically integrated retailer NUG.

Brian Carter is an architect and Associate Principal with Studio KDA, a 25-person architecture and interior design firm located in the San Francisco Bay Area. He leads complex projects in the Life Sciences, Housing and Arts & Hospitality sectors. Brian recently completed work on a 15,000 SF cannabis seed-to-sale facility in Oakland, California where he designed one of the first ground-up cannabis buildings in the Bay Area. The facility implements cutting edge operational efficiency, exceptional building performance, and state-of-the-art systems including reverse osmosis water filtration, condensate reclamation, integrated HVAC and CO2 injection, among others. Before joining Studio KDA, Brian worked in architectural forensics and litigation support. This training provided him with uncommon insight into the best practices of building science. With a deep commitment to his clients’ success, he combines his architectural experience with his knowledge of cannabis facility programming and systems to help develop innovative and successful projects. In addition to his work with Studio KDA, Brian is Vice-Chair of the Design Review Board for the City of Richmond. He holds a BSAS and a BFA from the University of Milwaukee, and a Master of Architecture from the University of Oregon.

Based part-time in San Francisco and part-time in Napa Valley, Quinn Arntsen divides his practice between traditional real estate work, serving high net worth individuals, and advising clients in the wine industry on transactional real estate matters. Quinn has represented clients in a wide range of projects: acquisitions and dispositions for real estate developers and investors; representing borrowers and lenders on real estate-secured financings and loan workouts; landlord and tenant-side leasing of office, life science, R&D, industrial, and agricultural real estate; negotiating and structuring joint ventures and other real estate investment entities; and assisting private clients on a plethora of real property issues. The bulk of his clients are midsized investment companies, developers, winemakers and grape growers, and high net worth individuals and their family offices. As part of his winery and vineyard practice, Quinn advises clients on real estate-related matters as well as general business issues. He has counseled clients on the management, operation and disposition of several premium vineyard properties, as well as vineyard leases, grape purchase agreements, the purchase and sale of wine companies, and a broad range of ancillary real estate issues such as easements. Quinn has also done real estate-related work for the growing cannabis industry. This has included negotiating and documenting joint ventures, preparing leases to cannabis operators on behalf of both landlords and tenants, the development of joint ventures, and the acquisition and development of a property for a high-end, all-inclusive cannabis center. As a practitioner, Quinn combines a calm, low-key demeanor with exceptional analytical abilities and an outcome-focused approach. His goal, always, is to get things done. With all his clients, Quinn knows their industries, understands their needs and overarching goals, and can help them focus on what is really important – helping them do business. He served on the Board of Directors for the Sonoma Valley Vintners & Growers Alliance for four years and is a graduate of Leadership Napa Valley, Class 31. Quinn was named one of the North Bay Business Journal’s “Forty under 40” in 2021. He has also been selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America: Ones to Watch in the area of Real Estate Law (2021) and has been recognized among Super Lawyer's Northern California Rising Stars (2015-2019). Quinn served as a judicial intern for the Honorable Mark D. Clarke of the United States District Court in Medford, Oregon. He earned his J.D. at Columbia University School of Law in 2009, where he was articles editor of the Journal of Asian Law, a James Kent Scholar and a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar. He earned his B.A. from Cornell University in 2006. Quinn is admitted to the State Bar of California.