Restaurant Renovation Permits in Winnipeg: What You Need

A restaurant renovation answers to more offices than most commercial projects. The City of Winnipeg looks at the building, a public health inspector looks at the kitchen, and if you serve alcohol, the Liquor, Gaming and Cannabis Authority of Manitoba (LGCA) wants to hear about major changes. This guide covers restaurants, cafés, bars and hotel food service. For the build itself, see our restaurant and hospitality renovations.

Which approvals does a restaurant renovation need?

Most restaurant projects in Winnipeg need a City building permit, trade permits for electrical, plumbing and mechanical work, a public health plan review before construction, and a building occupancy permit before reopening when the work is a substantial alteration or change of use. Zoning, kitchen ventilation, liquor licensing and patios can each add a step.

Requirements depend on your space and scope. Outside Winnipeg, your municipality's permit authority takes the City's role.

When does a restaurant need a new occupancy permit?

When the work is construction, a substantial alteration or a change of use. The City gives a retail space becoming a restaurant as an example of a change of use. Until the permit is issued, the space can be used for construction and for delivering and installing fixed equipment such as hard-wired kitchen equipment, but bringing in food and supplies, stocking shelves, training staff and conducting business count as occupying it.

A change of use also changes what the code expects. For an assembly occupancy with an occupant load over 100 people, the City's CADS form treats an increase or change in that occupant load as complex work, which means drawings sealed by an architect or engineer. The same applies to significant changes to fire alarms or sprinklers, any structural change, and significant exit or fire separation work in a Part 3 building. Progress inspections must reach the final stage before you can request occupancy.

What does the public health inspector review?

Before any construction or renovation, you submit the Food Handling Permit Registration Form, your menu and a detailed floor plan to your area public health inspector. The plan must be to scale and show food preparation, storage, dishwashing, dining, staff and washroom areas, every piece of equipment and plumbing fixture, finish materials and your hours. Inside Winnipeg, Manitoba's guideline says plans and specifications go to the City's One Stop Plan Approval office at Unit 31–30 Fort Street.

Manitoba's design guideline treats an operating restaurant as extensively remodelled when the work changes the structural or equipment layout or demolishes walls, ceilings or floors. The form also asks for construction, finishing and equipment installation dates and your expected opening date. If plans change, contact the inspector and submit a revised plan first. Give at least five working days' notice for the opening inspection; the permit is issued only once construction is complete and requirements are met.

Kitchen details the guideline spells out

• A separate handwash basin with hot and cold water in the food preparation area; a washroom basin does not count.
• A stainless steel three-compartment sink for dishwashing unless the inspector approves otherwise.
• Grease traps or interceptors sized to the Manitoba Plumbing Code and reachable for cleaning.
• Smooth, impervious floors in food and dishwashing areas, coved and sealed 10 cm (4 inches) up the wall, with washable, non-absorbent walls and ceilings.
• Shielded lighting with at least 215 lux (20 foot-candles) on food preparation and dishwashing work surfaces.
• At least 91 cm (36 inches) of clear walkway, with 107 to 123 cm (42 to 48 inches) recommended for work aisles.

Who approves the kitchen hood and fire suppression?

Both the building and fire authority having jurisdiction and the public health inspector are involved. Manitoba's guideline requires every new or renovated food premises to have an approved Type I or Type II hood suited to the menu, meeting the Building Code, the Fire Code and NFPA 96, with written confirmation from that authority before the health permit.

Type I hoods serve cooking that leaves grease, such as frying and grilling; Type II hoods handle steam, heat and odours from baking, boiling or dishwashing. Settle the menu before the mechanical design. In an existing restaurant with a Type II hood, a new owner or menu may mean upgrading the ventilation, and menu or cooking-equipment changes must be submitted in writing for review.

Do licensed restaurants and bars need to tell the LGCA about renovations?

Yes. The LGCA says it is the licensee's responsibility to notify it when major renovations are made to licensed premises. Its licence requirements also include municipal zoning approval, occupancy and fire safety approvals, and health approval, so the City and health steps above feed directly into keeping or getting your liquor service licence.

Before changing the bar, seating or layout, ask the LGCA's licensing staff how the change affects your licensed area and maximum capacity.

Can a restaurant be renovated after hours?

Often, yes. Evening and weekend work lets many restaurants keep serving while the renovation moves ahead in phases. The limit is noise: within 150 metres of a home, the City allows loud construction work only from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends and holidays, so plan demolition and cutting accordingly.

Food must stay protected from dust and debris, so ask your inspector before cooking beside an active work area. Bridgeland Builders schedules commercial work in the evenings and on weekends where it helps and sends a progress update every week. For staff and customer planning, see how to prepare your business for a major renovation.

Patios

Seasonal patios need a free City registration but no occupancy permit; one on a sidewalk or street also needs a certificate of insurance. Permanent patios need a building permit and an occupancy permit, a development permit if there will be outdoor drinking and dining, and an encroachment agreement if they sit on a sidewalk or street.

Next step: Bridgeland Builders renovates restaurants, cafés, bars and hotel spaces in Winnipeg and nearby communities, coordinating permits and inspections with the City or your local municipality. Book a free on-site visit for a free written quote, or start with the instant renovation estimate. For budgeting, read the biggest cost factors in commercial renovation projects, or see all our commercial renovation services.