Starting a Business in Coral Gables

Each year more than 200,000 new businesses open their doors in South Florida. Starting a business is an exciting venture requiring careful planning. One of the first and most important considerations is finding the perfect location.


The City of Coral Gables is committed to promoting and helping new businesses by creating a business-friendly environment consistent with the City's character and the quality of life of its business and residential communities. To that end, the Building and Zoning Department has established the following guidelines for opening a business in Coral Gables. The objective is to help new business understand and follow the City's policies and procedures.


To open a business, applicants must apply for and receive:

• A Certificate of Use
• An Occupational License
• All Necessary Building Permits (when exterior or interior changes to a building are required).

Certificate of Use

Before signing a lease or purchasing property in the City of Coral Gables, prospective business owners should apply for a Certificate of Use. This will ensure that the proposed use at a specific address complies with the City's zoning, parking and concurrency requirements. Certificates of use must be renewed annually.

Where to Apply
Applications are available and must be filed at the Building and Zoning Department, Third Floor of City Hall, 405 Biltmore Way.

Office Hours
7:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Monday - Friday, excluding holidays.

Fee
$75

What You Will Need to Provide

• Address and folio number of the property
• Legal description of the property
• Square footage of the space you will be occupying
• Name of the prior tenant of the space
• Name of your business
• Brief description of the proposed business
• Contact person and phone number

For More Information
For questions regarding Certificate of Use contact the Concurrency Administrator at 305-460-5236.

If the application does not involve a change of use or occupancy, it will be reviewed by the Concurrency Administrator. Applicants should allow a minimum of one week for approval.

If the application involves a change of use or occupancy, it will be reviewed by the Preliminary Review Committee. Composed of City staff members, the Committee reviews plans for proposed projects and makes recommendations to the applicant and to any necessary regulatory boards, including the Board of Architects and the Planning and Zoning Board. For more information about applying for review by the Preliminary Review Committee, call the Concurrency Administrator at 305-460-5236.

Be aware that applications that do not meet zoning requirements will need to be reviewed by the Planning and Zoning Board and applications requiring variances will need to be reviewed by the Board of Adjustment.

Occupational Licenses and Building Permits will not be issued before the applicant has been issued a Certificate of Use.

Anyone starting a new business must obtain occupational licenses both from the City and Miami-Dade County. The following information pertains to occupational licenses issued by the City.

Where to Apply:
Applications are available and must be filed at the Finance Department, Occupational License Division, First Floor of City Hall, 405 Biltmore Way.

Office Hours
8 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday - Friday, excluding holidays.

Fee
The fee varies by classification. Download the PDF for a list of all Occupational License fees.

What You Will Need to Provide

• Social Security number
• Federal employer I.D.number
• State License/Bar number
• Owner/Corporation Name
• Trade Name/DBA
• Name of corporate officers
• Cost value of stock carried
• Number of chairs/seats (for restaurants and movie theaters)
• Number of employees

For More Information
For questions regarding occupational licenses contact the License Clerk at 305-460-5302.

Once you have applied for an Occupational License, the Building and Zoning and the Fire Department will conduct fire, mechanical, electrical and plumbing inspections to check for compliance with the South Florida Building Code. The application needs to pass all final inspections and requires final approval by the building official. The process takes an average of four to eight weeks. Applications for Miami-Dade County Occupational Licenses are made through the Miami-Dade County Tax Collector's Office, Occupational License Division, 140 W. Flagler St., 14th Floor. For more information call 305-270-4949 between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday-Friday, excluding holidays.

Any external changes to a building, including signage, require approval by the Board of Architects. This is the first step in pulling building permits.

The Board of Architects meets every Thursday at 8:00 a.m. in the Commission Chambers, Second Floor of City Hall, 405 Biltmore Way. The application deadline is 12:00 p.m. on the Monday prior to the Thursday meeting. At that time, applicants must pay the appropriate fee and submit the application along with the specified accompanying materials.

Where to Apply
Applications are available and must be filed at the Building and Zoning Department, Third Floor of City Hall, 405 Biltmore Way.

Office Hours
7:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Monday - Friday, excluding holidays.

Fee
The fee varies depending on the estimated cost of construction. The fee for construction estimated at less than $1,000 is $8.30. The fee for construction estimated at more than $1,000 is $4.30 per $1,000 of estimated construction costs.

What You Will Need to Provide

• Description of the proposed structure
• Estimated cost
• Legal description of the property
• Project architect/phone number
  
  *Applicants will also need to provide plans, drawings, photographs, etc. A complete checklist for Board of Architects submittal is available with the application form.

For More Information
More information on the Board of Architects and fee schedules can be obtained by calling 305-460-5238 or 305-460- 5239.

Interior changes or modifications to a building, including all work exceeding $500 in labor and materials, and all electrical, plumbing or air conditioning work, also require a building permit but are not subject to review by the Board of Architects. Cosmetic changes, such as interior painting and replacement of carpeting do not need to be reviewed. However, to add bathrooms or change the location of walls or doors, the applicant must submit two sets of plans for review by the Building and Zoning Department to obtain a permit.

For more information about pulling building permits in the City of Coral Gables, please call 305-460-5249 or 305-460-5260.