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Local permits & fees

Coconino County, AZ Food Facility Permits & Fees

Restaurants and food trucks.

Coconino County Health and Human Services, Environmental Health Services · department site →
Fees change often — always confirm the current amount with the department before you budget.

Coconino County food-facility health permits run about $390 annually. Confirm the exact amount with Coconino County Health and Human Services, Environmental Health Services before you budget.

Confirm the authority for your exact address. Some cities run their own health division, and building, planning, fire, sewer/grease and business-license approvals are separate even when Coconino County Health and Human Services, Environmental Health Services issues the health permit.

The restaurant market in Coconino County

What the local foodservice landscape looks like — useful whether you’re opening here or sizing up the competition.

437
food & drink establishments
9,614
industry jobs
$267M
annual payroll
$27,782
avg wage / worker
  • 169 full-service restaurants
  • 137 limited-service & fast food
  • 22 bars & drinking places
  • 47 snack & coffee bars
  • 10 mobile food & trucks

▲ 1.4% change in establishments since 2022 (431 → 437).

The average foodservice wage here is $2,570 above the Arizona average ($25,212); Arizona has about 13,666 food & drink establishments statewide.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023 (NAICS 722, food services & drinking places) — establishments with paid employees. Some small-county payroll figures are withheld by Census for confidentiality.

Last verified: 2026-08-17 — we re-confirmed the serving authority, its contact, and that the fees below match the current published schedule. Fee schedules may carry an earlier effective date (shown per fee); local ordinances & amendments aren’t individually reviewed, so confirm current rules with the authority having jurisdiction.See something out of date? Report an update →

Restaurant / food-facility permit

Type 3 Food Service License (high-risk full food service)
$390 (annual)

Type 3 = full food service, bakery, catering without a permit, day care, school cafeteria, non-profit (per Coconino Type 3 application); Type 1 (bars/lounges, prepackaged, low-risk retail) and Type 2 (moderate-risk, same-day prep) fees are not published in accessible online sources (county fee schedule is behind a JavaScript/Cloudflare gate)

Plan review — required

  • required for new construction/remodel
  • fee based on food-service type per county guidance, but the specific dollar amount is not published in an accessible online source
  • Contact (928) 679-8760

Plan-review details & forms →

Reach the department

Office2625 N King Street, Flagstaff, AZ 86004

Inspection grading

Routine inspection — no public letter grade

No letter grade; Coconino posts inspection results in an online environmental-health portal.

Food truck / mobile permit

Mobile Food Unit license
  • mobile food unit license fee not published in an accessible online source
  • Contact Coconino County Environmental Health (928) 679-8760

How to apply

Fees/payment and forms are on the department site; application steps vary by concept — see the checklist below.

What it costs in permit fees to open here

The government permit & plan-review fees below total roughly $390 for Coconino County:

  • $390 — food-facility permit

That’s the paperwork only. Add buildout, equipment, deposits and licenses with the cost-to-open calculator. Fees change — confirm current amounts with the department.

How Coconino County’s permit cost compares

At about $390/year, Coconino County’s restaurant health permit is above the Arizona median ($200) and above the U.S. median ($125) — higher than about 97% of U.S. counties.
Ranked 8th-lowest of 9 Arizona counties by permit cost.

Comparison uses the lowest published annual restaurant-permit figure in each county; confirm your exact tier with the department.

Local food-service market

About 431 food & drinking establishments serve ~144,472 residents in Coconino County — one per ~335 residents, denser than the Arizona average (one per ~597).

U.S. Census 2023 population; County Business Patterns 2022 (NAICS 722).

Budget the permit stack

Start with ~$390 annual health permit.

Plus building, fire, and business-license fees that vary locally — use the cost calculators and the checklist below to budget the full stack.

Grease trap & FOG requirements

food establishments here must control fats, oils & grease (FOG) with a grease interceptor or trap, and typically register with the local sewer/wastewater authority. A grease interceptor sized to the locally adopted plumbing code is required, with a municipal sewer-authority FOG discharge permit.

Size the interceptor with our grease-trap sizing calculator, compare units in the grease-trap catalog, and confirm the local FOG permit with Coconino County Health and Human Services, Environmental Health Services (contact above).

Fire suppression & backflow

Hood fire suppression: commercial cooking under a Type I hood needs a wet-chemical suppression system to NFPA 96, permitted and inspected by the local fire marshal. Type I hood fire suppression must meet NFPA 96 and the fire code adopted by the local fire authority. See do I need a hood? and the hood CFM calculator.

Backflow prevention: An approved backflow preventer with a certified annual test is required by the local water purveyor. A certified backflow assembly (often an RPZ) on the water service, tested annually, is standard — confirm with your water utility.

Watch out for

  • Three-tier food-service licensing: Type 1 (low risk), Type 2 (moderate risk), Type 3 (high risk)
  • Governed by the Coconino County Unified Health Code; fee schedule adopted separately (Schedule of Fees on county website)
  • Only the Type 3 license fee ($390) is confirmed from a current official application form

Other food-service permits in this jurisdiction

CategoryAnnual feeNotes
Caterer$390 (annual, as a Type 3 Food Service License)Coconino Type 3 definition explicitly includes 'catering without a permit' among high-risk full food service; caterers are licensed as Type 3
Bakery / food processing$390 (annual, as a Type 3 Food Service License)Type 3 definition explicitly includes 'bakery'
Bar / limited food servicefalls under a Type 1 Food Service License (bars/lounges, prepackaged, low-risk retail); Type 1 fee is not published in an accessible online sourceContact Coconino County Environmental Health (928) 679-8760
Temporary / seasonal eventspecial-event/temporary food fee not published in an accessible online sourceContact Coconino County Environmental Health (928) 679-8760

Equipment your Coconino County plan review will check

Health-department plan review looks for specific, code-compliant fixtures. Compare spec-filtered options, then confirm counts and sizes with your local requirements. See the full list in what equipment a commercial kitchen requires.

Nearby counties

Permit costs and rules change at the county line — compare Coconino County with its neighbors.

How to open: typical permitting sequence

This is a typical sequence — confirm the exact sequence with your authority having jurisdiction.

  1. Confirm whether Coconino County or another local jurisdiction (city/district) handles your exact address.
  2. Confirm zoning and permitted use.
  3. Prepare your menu and scaled plans.
  4. Include an equipment schedule with ANSI/NSF spec sheets.
  5. Submit water-heater and hood documentation.
  6. Pay plan-review fees.
  7. Respond to plan-check corrections.
  8. Obtain Environmental Health plan approval.
  9. Obtain building, plumbing, mechanical and fire approvals.
  10. Schedule rough-plumbing, pre-final and final health inspections.
  11. Pay the operating-permit / application fees.
  12. Receive approval before storing or preparing food.

Official plan-check requirements: plan-check guide →

Frequently asked questions

How much is a food permit in Coconino County?

$390 (annual) These are annual health-permit fees, usually tiered by seating or size; confirm your exact category with the department.

Is plan review required in Coconino County?

Yes — plan review is required before you build or remodel a food facility. Typical fees: required for new construction/remodel; fee based on food-service type per county guidance, but the specific dollar amount is not published in an accessible online source; Contact (928) 679-8760

Who issues food permits in Coconino County?

Food permits here are issued by Coconino County Health and Human Services, Environmental Health Services. See the department site for current details.

Are city building and fire approvals separate?

Yes — building, plumbing, mechanical and fire approvals are always separate from the health permit and are often handled by different offices.
Sources: www3.citizenserve.com · www.coconino.az.gov · www.coconino.az.gov · observed 2026-08-07