Amalgamating liquor and gambling regulation in Manitoba may cost downtown Winnipeg a few good workers.

The Liquor and Gaming Authority has released an expression of interest for new office space that doesn't include downtown.

Lease costs, a drive for better customer service and the need for 24-hour parking are some of the reasons why the city centre doesn't fit its needs, Liquor and Gaming officials say.

The Liquor and Gaming Authority was created after the regulatory body of the Manitoba Liquor Control Commission and the Manitoba Gaming Control Commission were merged into one organization. The move came after the former NDP government merged MLCC and the Manitoba Lotteries Corp. into one entity — Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries.

Currently the authority has approximately 90 of its 95 staff members working in two locations in Winnipeg. Nearly half work at an office on Garry Street and the rest of the Winnipeg workers are at a building on Waverley Street.

The other employees work outside Winnipeg.

Kristianne Dechant, the manager of communications and research with Liquor and Gaming, said the search for new office space for all the Winnipeg staff is an effort to save money over time and offer a single location to customers seeking permits and other information.

"If we can bring our staff together, our processes together, our forms together — everything — by all being in one location, then that allows for more seamless processes," Dechant said.

Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries' downtown headquarters proposal was scrapped in 2016. (Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries) The expression of interest excluding the downtown is based on the need to have parking for both customers and staff and to find competitive lease costs, and not because Liquor and Gaming doesn't like the city centre, she said.

"The driver behind this is to integrate our services fully. We're certainly not trying to say bad things about downtown. Those of us who have worked here have all really liked being downtown and have enjoyed it," Dechant said.

Liquor and Gaming's move also has nothing to do with a recent decision by Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries to dump plans for a downtown headquarters.

The Liquor and Gaming Authority is a stand-alone organization that inspects and regulates gambling and liquor sales in Manitoba and answers to a separate board from the one that oversees Liquor and Lotteries.

'Wrong message'

Stefano Grande of the Downtown Winnipeg BIZ said despite the relatively small number of staff involved, this is not what he wants to see for the city centre.

"Yes, it does send the wrong message. I think over the last number of years, there has been a downtown first policy associated with a number of departments and entities, and so I think we need to get a better understanding of what their requirements and issues are," Grande said.

Stefano Grande of the Downtown BIZ says he's been given no indication that the Manitoba government has abandoned a downtown first policy. Many corporate entities look beyond lease rates when choosing locations, he said, with a goal of attracting highly qualified staff who are younger and want to work in central areas with access to amenities and short commutes.

The previous government established the downtown first policy when deciding on locations, Grande said, and he's had no indication from the recently elected Progressive Conservatives that it has changed.

"We haven't had that indication [from the new government]. We are actively meeting and talking with government officials. We are planning a tour for cabinet of our downtown and I spoke with the minister responsible for this entity [Liquor and Gaming] yesterday, and he really wasn't aware of this decision being made," Grande said.

Grande said he is meeting with Liquor and Gaming officials to better understand the type of space they are looking for and how the downtown can meet their needs.

Dechant said if the expression of interest for a new location does not identify a suitable location, Liquor and Gaming would consider reopening the search to include downtown.

"This is a first stage. We are still in early days in this, so really what we are looking for here is the most cost-effective solution," Dechant said, adding the expression of interest would have to be rewritten and reissued to include downtown if necessary.