Subway Restaurant Build-Out

Verterra Builds completed a Subway franchise restaurant build-out in Greater Vancouver, BC, delivering a permit-closed, Fraser Health-inspected location on the franchisee's opening schedule under a fixed-price contract.

The Project

The franchisee had secured an inline retail space in a Metro Vancouver commercial development and was working toward a specific opening date tied to their franchise agreement. The space was delivered as a warm shell with base building mechanical and electrical in place but no fit-out work completed.

The scope covered everything from demolition of the existing partition to certificate of occupancy: commercial kitchen construction, ventilation hood system and makeup air, floor drains and grease trap, three-phase electrical for kitchen equipment, dining room and front-of-house fit-out to Subway's brand standard specifications, and all permits and inspections.

Subway Brand Standard Requirements

Subway's franchise construction manual specifies approved suppliers, exact material grades, and equipment requirements for every element of the build. The manual is detailed: flooring materials, wall finishes, millwork hardware, hood system specifications, and the layout of every workstation in the kitchen line are all prescribed.

Verterra sourced all brand-standard materials and equipment from Subway's approved supplier list for Metro Vancouver. The Subway field construction representative conducted milestone inspections at rough-in complete and near-final completion. Both inspections passed without required changes -- the result of building to the brand standard from the permit-drawing stage rather than interpreting it at the field level.

Commercial Kitchen Construction

The kitchen scope included a Type 1 ventilation hood system with grease-rated exhaust duct, makeup air unit sized to the kitchen's exhaust requirement, and a fire suppression system. The hood system was fabricated to the specific kitchen layout, ordered at permit application to avoid lead-time delays, and installed after rough-in was complete.

Plumbing included a three-compartment sink, hand sinks at code-required locations per Fraser Health's food premises regulations, floor drains at the kitchen and warewashing areas, and a grease interceptor sized to the kitchen's grease load. All plumbing was permitted through Technical Safety BC.

Electrical included a three-phase panel extension from the building's electrical room to accommodate the kitchen equipment loads, dedicated circuits for the oven, refrigeration equipment, and dishwasher, plus a complete single-phase distribution for lighting and front-of-house circuits.

Permits and Fraser Health Inspection

We managed the full permit package: City of Vancouver building permit, plumbing permit, mechanical permit for the hood system, and electrical permit through Technical Safety BC. The building permit application included stamped architectural drawings, mechanical design for the hood and makeup air system, and a fire suppression design.

The Fraser Health Authority food premises inspection was conducted after construction completion. The inspection covered hand sink placement and accessibility, surface materials in the kitchen and warewashing areas, ventilation performance, equipment clearances, and lighting levels in food prep areas. The location passed on the first visit. Verterra conducted an internal pre-inspection using Fraser Health's inspection criteria before calling for the official inspection -- our standard process on all food service projects.

The Result

The location opened on the franchisee's target date. All permits were closed. Fraser Health operating permit was issued. The Subway field construction representative's final documentation requirements were fulfilled at handover: closed permit records, equipment commissioning documentation, and as-built drawings.

For franchisees evaluating contractors for their next Subway location in Metro Vancouver or Victoria, Verterra Builds manages the full build-out scope under a fixed-price contract including all permits, Fraser Health coordination, and Subway brand-standard compliance. Call (604) 690-3830 or view our franchise build-out service page.