P purchased the property in 1955 and has occupied and used the property since then as a fraternity house which, at the time of this application, housed 21 young men. The property is located in a restricted commercial district. Permitted uses are for single or two-family residences, multiple dwelling, fraternities, sororities, boarding and lodging houses, nonprofit hospital, religious, educational, and philanthropic institutions, private clubs, and lodges (where the chief activity is not a service carried on as a business), apartment hotels, and office buildings. P wanted to build a four-story building 30 by 60 feet. Under the provisions of the code, a building 28 by 48.6 feet was the maximum size permitted. The variances requested involved front, rear, and side yard reductions varying from 5 feet to 6.4 feet. The off-street parking under the zoning code was required to be on the premises or within 1,200 feet, while the off-street parking proposed was 1,280 feet from the premises. P would house 48 men vs. the zoning allowance of 36. P claimed practical difficulties from economic considerations alone. Everyone turned them down and the court affirmed those decisions. P appealed.

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