One Storefront, Two Uses
I have a commercial tenant who uses my storefront as a deli. I am considering using a part of the store for my own business. What are the possible issues I should be aware of? For example, do I need a separate eatery permit if the deli already makes hot sandwiches? Can I open a…
I have a commercial tenant who uses my storefront as a deli. I am considering using a part of the store for my own business. What are the possible issues I should be aware of? For example, do I need a separate eatery permit if the deli already makes hot sandwiches? Can I open a second entrance for my own business? Is this considered subletting a store? Or is it an illegal use of the premise? Thanks.
The DOB will permit you to open up another entrance in general but you have to take the following into account:
1. does the building have an existing C. of O. ?
2. How much is the sq. ft. of the combined spaces ?
If the building has an existing C. of O. then you may even get away as an alteration type 2 which gives you much more leeway in terms of getting an approval and signoff. Otherwise you will need an alteration 1 which can get complicated pretty fast. A retail space is generally conditioned as 25 sq. per person so that is no change but your use may come up as an issue. There are guidelines which you can maneuver around to your benefit under CERTAIN circumastances to be able to fly thru with DOB. If you need more or you have additional questions feel free to e-mail me @ brooklynexpediter@gmail.com
Yes, the tenant has a lease, but he has agreed to rip up the old lease and sign a new lease at a lower amount in exchange for giving up some space.
I was more concerned with the legal aspects of this endeavor, such as does the dept of consumer affairs issue eatery permits for a business that operates only a portion of a store, and whether the DOB would allow me to open a separate entrance (the store is a corner property, so my tenant and I can have separate entrances on separate streets).
I think you need to be a bit more detailed:
Does the existing tenant rent the entire space?
Does your deli tenant have a lease?
Will you be re-negotiating the lease if you take away square footage from your tenant?
What business do you want to open. From the sound of your post it seems like you want to open a food based business.
You are going to open a food store of some kind inside the same space as a deli? Wouldn’t that be undermining one, or both, of your businesses?
How big is the space? Can it accommodate two businesses?
I would think your biggest issues would be with the lease the tenant has and how they feel about renegotiating and how they feel about a potential competitor coming into their space.