Town of East Greenwich v. Day

William P. and Susan Day, husband and wife, are the owners of a three-story residence situated in a district zoned R-10 in the town of East Greenwich. A single-family house is a permitted use in that district, but a multifamily dwelling is prohibited. Notwithstanding, the Days purchased the premises in 1972 anticipating that they and their children would occupy the first two floors of the dwelling and that the third floor would be rented as an apartment. Their plan suffered a setback when the building inspector refused them a building permit and charged them with violating the ordinance by…