Convert a space into a restaurant in Arizona.

Climate Zone 2B (hot-dry) for the Valley means make-up air units have to dehumidify AND temper to ~78°F supply. A 4,000-CFM wok or wood-oven hood that comes with a 4,000-CFM MUA unit untempered will pull the dining room to 95°F by mid-July. Every meaningful Phoenix restaurant conversion budgets a tempered MUA — typically $8K–$15K above the "no MUA" line item the GC quotes from a Midwest catalog.

Plan-check rhythm: Phoenix DSD averages 4–6 business days on first review for a typical TI; Mesa and Scottsdale run 3–5; Chandler and Tempe lean 5–7. None of the Maricopa AHJs accept over-the-counter for restaurant TI larger than 500 SF — every project goes through full plan review. Tucson and Flagstaff add a 2–4 day handoff because the AHJ counters do not pre-screen for completeness the way Phoenix DSD does; a missed cover-sheet field becomes a full correction cycle.

Grease interceptor rules vary materially: Phoenix and Mesa enforce IPC §1003 sizing via FSE (Food Service Establishment) review separate from building plan-check; Scottsdale puts it inside the same plan-check stack. The result is that two restaurants 8 miles apart can have a 3-week difference in permitting timeline based on interceptor sizing alone. Walk the existing interceptor with a tape measure before you sign.