OLG headquarters - is it in the Sault or not? asks Mayor Deb

The official line to Saultites is that Ontario Lottery and Gaming is headquartered in Sault Ste. Marie but our City officials are wondering if that's really the case.

"In December 2002, then Chair and Chief Executive Office, Ron Barbaro, wrote to then Sault Ste. Marie Mayor John Rowswell and reassured him the OLG head-office was in Sault Ste. Marie. At the same time Mr. Barbaro and OLG understood to secure Younge Street office space (quite expensive relative to Sault Ste. Marie) and started creating a second 'head-office' , conveniently located close to his home... You will note that even while writing to assure our previous Mayor that head office was in Sault Ste. Marie, his correspondence's letterhead shows that Mr. Barbaros' "head office" was at 4120 Yonge Street, Toronto."

-- excerpt from a letter sent from Mayor Debbie Amaroso to Premier Kathleen Wynne on Friday.

On behalf of Sault Ste. Marie citizens and City Council, Mayor Amaroso is asking Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne to make sure the head offices of Ontario Lottery and Gaming (OLG) are in Sault Ste. Marie where the government says they are supposed to be.

In a letter sent to the Premier today Amaroso says that, since 2002, OLG presence at its supposed headquarters has significantly dwindled and that signs indicate that's a trend that will continue unless OLG makes some serious changes in its policies, procedures and priorities.

Sault Ste. Marie became the headquarters for OLG in 1986 under the Liberal government led by David Peterson under that government's Northern Ontario Relocation Program.

However, says Amaroso, the reality of OLG services, offices and jobs in the Sault appear to differ greatly from the policies that the Ontario Government reaffirmed as recently as March 2 in a statement to Sault Ste. Marie media.

"I write to you today to respectfully request that the Government of Ontario provide explicit direction to the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation concerning the precise definition of what it means to be the 'head office'," says Amaroso in her letter to the Premier. "We would also be grateful to know what the Government of Ontario expects OLG to do - in principle, policy and practice - to enshrine Sault Ste. Marie head office at its true corporate operation focal point, a role that this office fulfilled in the past."

Amaroso says the City believes the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation head office should be the main office and centre of operations.

It should include finance, accounting, communications, administration and technology management, among other corporate functions.

The physical location in Sault Ste. Marie should be the primary location from which OLG manages and controls its responsibilities pursuant to the Criminal Code as it relates to oversight of private sector lottery and gaming operations.

 "We respectfully request that this definition be given careful consideration and that you reply to us and OLG management confirming Ontario's understanding of the definition of the OLG head office," she says.

Amaroso says the City recognizes OLG modernization and procurement processes are reaching a critical stage and she wants to make sure the City has strong business case to attract lottery and gaming operators.

Having a clear indication that OLG's head office will remain in Sault Ste. Marie in more than name only would be a great support for that business case. 

"In discussions among senior Ontario, OLG and Sault Ste. Marie there has been a lack of consensus, clarity and a precise definition of the term 'head office'," says Amaroso. "It appears to us that there is an important role for you [Premier Wynne] and the Cabinet in providing clarity and precision on this matter." 

Amaroso points to two main concerns the City has with OLG and it's practices concerning staffing of its Sault Ste. Marie office.

"Is spite of numerous assurances that Sault Ste. Marie's OLG corporate operations are the 'head office', as of January 1, 2012, there were 726 employees in Toronto including all members of OLG's executive team and 387 employees at the OLG York Mills office," she says. "This compares to the Sault Ste. Marie office, which had only 587 employees at that time."

"Toronto is also identified in the Drummond Report and OLG promotional material as a 'head office'. Such descriptions in public documents contribute to the ambiguity on the question of the head office location and role."

She points out that the Commission on the Reform of the Ontario Public Service (Drummond Report) recommends the head office be located in the Sault; that implementation of such a decision would save money for OLG and the Province now and into the future; that this action would reaffirm the Wynne government's commitment to Northern Ontario and Sault Ste. Marie; and, that clarity on this issue would serve the needs and expectations of current and future OLG employees.

Amaroso has suggested that OLG initially advertise positions in Sault Ste. Marie for some time before Toronto and use a more aggressive recruitment and retention strategy for employees in the Sault to help to begin to return the balance of jobs to the Sault.