Q: What do prospective business owners receive from the city regarding requirements of opening a business in Plano?
Mata: We point them to the permit requirements that are detailed online. That includes the building plans—plumbing, electrical, mechanical, all the different disciplines. We tell you in our handout what you need to begin plan review. Plan review is when we examine the plans. The better the plans are, the easier the project runs—sometimes that's the challenge.
Young: When you start serving food there is a different set of requirements you have to meet—besides the building code you also have to meet the food code. Some people don’t understand it's not just as simple as opening up and selling food. There are certain requirements for the floors, walls, ceilings, equipment and things like that. We’re looking at the size of the facility, the menu and the equipment has to be commercial—not residential.
Q: Which city officials/departments are involved in the process of businesses receiving a Certificate of Occupancy?
Mata: The CO will come from our building inspection department at the end of the project. However, lots of departments have to be involved. The health department is involved. The way we set up our permit, after we perform our plan review and after the answers to the plans are complete, we hand them back the set with markups and notes and tell them to go build it. We also give them a custom list of inspections made for their project. We won’t issue a CO unless the health department is finished with their inspections.
Q: Why are these procedures important?
Mata: We're all about building safety. Perhaps the restaurant is large enough that it needs several exits and so we do calculations based on the occupant load. If it is required to be sprinklered, that's another component that has to be done correctly. We don't want any issues if there was an emergency type situation and everyone had to exit. We also consider if the surfaces in the restaurant are fire retardant. There's a rating on anything that's used, from carpet to wall—fabrics, decorations and other things. We are looking at all those components and making sure that the environment is safe for all citizens.
Young: It’s always safety first. Because we’re serving the public we have different categories, 1-4, for our food facilities. One is the simplest operation like a convenience store and they have just milk in the refrigerator to a four which is either a daycare or a retirement home, where you serve what the Food and Drug Administration considers a highly susceptible population. All of this is designed to protect the health of the individuals.
Q: What is the time range it takes for a new business to move from requesting a CO to opening the business?
Mata: There is a lot of range. You don’t need a permit for paint and changing out tile but you do need a CO. Health goes out and looks at it, fire will go out and look at it. That could move pretty quick. When you’re starting a whole new project, there are a lot of variables. You have mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire contractors—are they the best you can get with a lot of experience doing a lot of good work? Or are they the cheapest contractor you can get to do the work? You get what you pay for and that can slow the project down. We want to respond in 10 business days or less. We hit that mark a lot. Our building codes are minimum standards that’s on the first page of each code we have.
Young: Anytime they are going to change fixtures, or common areas like restrooms, we tell them to consult with us first to make sure they’re using the appropriate materials. We don’t rush anything. Plano is a city of excellence. We make sure every product we put out of our two departments and the city is as perfect as possible. We’re regulators and educators but we are not consultants. A lot of people want us to give them a punch list, we are not there to do that. Our food code is based on the Texas Food Assessment Rules and Regulations and the Food and Drug Administration code. It's not something we make up while we go.
Q: At what stages of a building process do inspectors get involved? In what capacity?
Mata: There's a series of inspections. We give you that list, and you call us as you go. After the building [inspector] comes then the electrical or the plumbing, etc., it's in order. It also depends on how much construction or renovation you're doing at your site. If you're like a sandwich shop walking into a sandwich shop, not so much. The least number of inspections I've seen for a change of ownership that has no renovations or anything like that, is three. It's usually fire, health then the final CO.
Q: What are reasons for business/restaurant opening delays?
Mata: It could be a misunderstanding of certain inspection requirements from certain departments and communication. We have a temporary certificate of occupancy—we know you want to get open and we’re trying to be as business friendly as we can. A TCO is allowed but the requirement is the inspectors agree you are eligible for a TCO. There may be some things the fire department is waiting on like maybe you don’t have all your fire extinguishers or maybe your address isn’t on the back of the building–you’re eligible for a TCO.
Young: When they schedule an inspection with us we email them a pre-check list they can do. No hot water, refrigeration equipment working improperly and drainage backup are significant things that can cause a restaurant to fail and cause delay.
Q: What can business owners do to make the process go as smoothly as possible?
Young: Do their research first. They can call and talk to our departments. What often happens is mom and pop shops rent a building and say they want to open a restaurant there but there isn’t a grease trap, there are plumbing issues and it becomes a more daunting task than they knew. Before they rent the spot, they should call our department.
Q: What do you wish business owners knew about the permitting process before going in?
Mata: We’re here to help you. Sometimes we don’t get our story out there well enough about the successes and how fast some of these permits go. We have a lot of permits that have gone out and they did exactly the things we’re asking. A lot of times it was because a lot of effort was put forth in those construction documents, the drawings. They were well done, the people knew exactly what they were doing and it wasn't their first time. A lot of times, mom and pop [shops], it is their first time and they’re not contractors or builders, they are good people, and good restaurateurs, but they don't know about construction. They should hire professional building contractors–architects, engineers and food consultants.
Young: A lot of people think they are saving money by going cheap but that’s not always the case. A few mom and pops do their research. They sit across the desk from us and take great notes for about an hour. A couple weeks later we get their plans and it is great. At the very beginning stages, when someone decides they want to open a business in Plano, we are happy to meet with them to discuss requirements and everything that is involved.
