1278 LAWS OF MARYLAND. [CH. 633

Council may also authorize the Board of Zoning Appeals to
interpret the zoning maps or pass upon disputed questions of
lot lines or district boundary lines or similar questions as
they arise in appeals before the Board.

SEC. 21. And be it further enacted, That appeals to the
Board of Zoning Appeals may be taken by any person, board,
association, corporation or official aggrieved by the grant or
refusal of a building permit or the grant or withholding of
an occupancy or use permit or any other administrative de-
cision based or claimed to be based in whole or part upon any
zoning regulation enacted or adopted by the District Council.

Upon appeals, the Board of Zoning Appeals shall have the
following powers:

(1) To hear and decide appeals where it is alleged by the
appellant that there is error in any refusal of a building, use
or occupancy permit or in any other order, requirement, de-
cision or determination made by a building official when
passing upon an application for a building or other permit
or by any other administrative officer or body in the admin-
istration of any zoning regulation enacted pursuant to this
Act. Nothing contained in this paragraph shall be deemed
to authorize the Board of Zoning Appeals to reverse or modify
any refusal of a permit or any other order or requirement,
decision or determination which conforms to the provisions
of this Act or to the regulations made under this Act and
which, therefore, was not erroneous.

(2) To hear and decide, in accordance with the provisions
of the regulations enacted by the District Council, requests
for special exceptions or map interpretations or for decisions
upon permits for extensions, substitutions, restorations or re-
constructions of lawful non-conforming uses or other special
questions upon which the Board of Zoning Appeals is required
or authorized by the zoning regulations to pass.

(3) Where, by reason of exceptional narrowness, shallow-
ness or shape of a specific piece of property at the time of the
original enactment of a regulation or amendment or by reason
of exceptional topographical conditions or other extraordi-
nary or exceptional situation or condition of a specific piece
of property, the strict application of such regulation or amend-
ment would result in peculiar and exceptional practical diffi-
culties to or exceptional or undue hardship upon the owner
of said property, to authorize, upon an appeal relating to
such property, a variance from such strict application so as
to relieve such difficulty or hardship, provided such relief can
be granted without a substantial impairment of the intent,
purpose and integrity of the zone plan as embodied in the
zoning regulations.