Search on look-up column

We just transitioned to SharePoint 2019 on-prem, and we have a contact list that we use for our employee directory.  The Locations aren't showing in search results, and I wonder if I need to create a managed property for that column.  My question - can I create a managed property for an existing column?  When I view the list of properties to show in the search results, the Location isn't one of the options.  Or, is there something else I need to do get Locations to show as an option?  Thanks!