Liquor licensing process for 7-Eleven in progress

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 21/12/2023 (655 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Half a year later, the taps are still dry — of alcohol — at a local 7-Eleven that wanted a liquor licence.

The 7-Eleven at 3031 Ness Ave. sported a public notice last June after it applied to the Liquor, Gaming and Cannabis Authority of Manitoba for a dining room liquor service licence.

Beer and wine flow at 7-Eleven restaurants in other provinces. The goal is for the Ness Avenue shop to operate a licensed restaurant with alcohol, a spokesperson said last summer.

As of Wednesday, the Manitoba licensing process was still in progress, the LGCA said. It wouldn’t comment on the stage of the application process.

Requests to 7-Eleven went unanswered.

Employees on site didn’t know the status of the licence application; there were no tables and chairs set for a dine-in restaurant.

The LGCA can only issue a licence once other municipal approvals have been granted and provided to the liquor authority, spokeswoman Lisa Hansen wrote in an email.

The City of Winnipeg hadn’t issued any permits to the Ness 7-Eleven in 2023, as of Thursday.

People could contact the LGCA by June 19 objecting to 7-Eleven’s proposal. There were notes, Hansen wrote.

“After reviewing the objections and working to address the concerns raised, the LGCA decided to proceed with the licensing,” she continued. “No appeal was received to that decision.”

She didn’t answer whether other convenience stores, including different 7-Elevens, have applied for similar permits.

On Thursday, Original George’s Burgers & Subs and Nails 4 You, a Regent Avenue nail salon, had active public notices about seeking a liquor licence.

The Manitoba government has changed hands since 7-Eleven applied for its licence. The former Progressive Conservatives pushed for private retailers like convenience stores to sell alcohol.

The ruling New Democrats appointed a union president as the chair of Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries this month.

In Jeff Traeger’s mandate letter, the NDP calls for the expansion of public liquor retail stores and keeping alcohol sales “within a public delivery approach.”

However, 7-Eleven seeks to sell alcohol at a restaurant in its store, not in fridges along its walls.

“7-Eleven-licensed restaurants have been well received by our guests in both Alberta and Ontario,” a company spokesperson wrote in a statement last June. “We are excited to roll out the new concept in Winnipeg.”

The first restaurant opened in Alberta; 7-Eleven opened seven in December of 2022. Between Alberta and Ontario, 7-Eleven has at least 13 restaurants.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com