What permits do you need to open a restaurant in Abilene?

Commercial Mechanical Permit

$75 minimum, and remarkably flat: a Type I grease hood system is $75, a Type II hood $75, a refrigerant system up to 10 tons $75 and over 10 tons $85, a boiler up to 100,000 BTU $75 and above it $85. A restaurant's entire mechanical package in Abilene is a few hundred dollars, against Arlington's per-component pricing that can run into four figures on a large kitchen.

Grading Permit

$250 flat. Engineering charges separately for the site works around it: a driveway approach is $35 each, sidewalk, curb and gutter $35 for the first 100 linear feet then $0.06 a foot, and a drainage plan review $25.

Board of Adjustment Application

$400 to file with the Board of Adjustment — the route for a variance or a special exception where the zoning ordinance does not permit what you intend outright. An easement release is also $400, a proportionality appeal $500 and a sidewalk waiver or deviation on a plat $250.

Food Establishment Permit

Abilene prices this by how many inspections the establishment needs, not by turnover or risk band: four inspections a year is $350, three is $275, two (including multi-seasonal) is $200, and one is $75. A non-profit not designated 501(c)(3), and ball parks, pay the one-inspection rate of $75; a seasonal snow cone operation has a nine-month option at $100. Biannual school inspections are $75. The renewal cycle is the calendar year and the deadline is mid-January — pay between 16 and 31 January and it is $50 extra, after 31 January $100 extra. Re-inspection is $75.

Fire Construction Permit

$50 to install, modify or remove flammable and combustible liquid tanks and piping, install or modify an LP-gas tank, install or modify a private fire hydrant, install or modify a spray room, dip tank or spray booth, erect a temporary membrane structure or tent, or fit a vent hood suppression system. A tent permit for public access of at least 200 square feet is also $50.

Plat Application

$350 covers a preliminary, final, minor or replat for the first four lots, then $15 a lot up to a $2,500 review cap, with actual county filing costs on top. A preliminary development plan costs nothing. Projects inside the city's designated infill area get a 50% reduction under the Infill Development Strategy — that discount does not apply to pass-through costs such as filing fees or notifications, but on the review fees it is real money.

Mixed Beverage Permit (MB)

Read directly from the TABC two-year licensing fee schedule: Mixed Beverage Permit (MB) $5,300 original, $2,650 renewal, charged on a two-year cycle. A Wine and Malt Beverage Retailer's Permit (BG) is $1,900 if you do not need spirits. Note a widely-cited competitor lists $6,006 for this permit, which does not appear in the TABC schedule.

Shared with other businesses in Abilene

• Commercial Demolition Permit — City of Abilene Building Inspections, $200–$500 single or multiple storey, not stated in the published fee schedule. Also required for retail stores and contractors and trades; what it involves is set out on the contractors and trades page.
• Grease Trap and Interceptor Permit — City of Abilene Building Inspections, $75 new or replacement, not stated in the published fee schedule. Also required for coffee shops, auto repair shops and salons and barbers; what it involves is set out on the salons and barbers page.
• Commercial Alarm Permit — City of Abilene Building Inspections, $50 per year, one year. Also required for retail stores, coffee shops, salons and barbers, auto repair shops, veterinary clinics and fitness studios; what it involves is set out on the veterinary clinics page.
• Commercial Roofing Permit — City of Abilene Building Inspections, $200 per roof structure, not stated in the published fee schedule. Also required for retail stores, auto repair shops and contractors and trades; what it involves is set out on the retail stores page.
• Temporary Food Permit — Abilene-Taylor County Public Health District, Environmental Health, $52 per event, per event. Also required for coffee shops, food trucks and retail stores; what it involves is set out on the coffee shops page.
• Fire Operational Permit — Abilene Fire Department, $50 per permit, not stated in the published fee schedule. Also required for auto repair shops, coffee shops, contractors and trades, fitness studios, retail stores and salons and barbers; what it involves is set out on the retail stores page.