Manitoba eyes wine bars, beverage rooms without hotel requirement and more
Manitobans may soon have more places to raise a glass if a bill before the legislature becomes law.
The bill is aimed at simplifying the province's licensing system, with its many categories that require a full kitchen for some operators, entertainment for others and on-site hotel rooms for many.
One proposed change would eliminate the need for beverage rooms -- a type of licence that does not require a full kitchen -- to have hotel rooms on the premises. The current rules require a minimum of four rooms in small communities and 40 in Winnipeg and Brandon.
Justice Minister Kelvin Goertzen said he wasn't sure why that requirement was put in place almost a century ago after the end of Prohibition.
"There wasn't a lot of close connection between the serving of alcohol ... and a hotel situation," Goertzen said Tuesday.
"I don't think that the expectation was that ... people needed a place to sleep at night."
The idea was not well received by many hotel owners consulted by the government. They told the provincial regulator -- the Liquor, Cannabis and Gaming Authority of Manitoba -- that they had invested a lot of money to meet the hotel-room requirement, the authority said in a written report on its consultations.
The bill would also let the provincial cabinet set up new categories of licences. That could pave the way for wine bars inside wine stores, Goertzen said. It would also make it easier for temporary summer outdoor bars, called 'pop-ups', to get a licence.
The changes, for the most part, were welcomed by the Manitoba Restaurant and Food Services Association.
The group said competition from new entrants with less overhead could cause some problems, but the overall move to reduce red tape and make it easier to get a licence for modern alcohol distribution is a big plus.
"The problem is, is that these (current) licences really focus on business what it looked like 20, 30 years ago," said Shaun Jeffrey, the association's executive director.
Many restaurants could take advantage of the new flexible system to open temporary outdoor bars in the summer, Jeffrey said.
It's not clear when the bill put forward by the Progressive Conservative government could become law. The legislature is scheduled to break for the summer next week.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 24, 2022.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.