In Pennsylvania, municipal governing bodies and zoning hearing boards are entitled to considerable deference when interpreting and applying their own zoning ordinances. This deference is based largely on the premise that municipal bodies and boards charged with drafting and administering zoning ordinances possess an unparalleled knowledge of and expertise in their own ordinances, as in In re Thompson, 896 A.2d 659, 669 (Pa. Commw. Ct. 2006). However, this deference is not without limit. The General Assembly and Pennsylvania courts have established the following statutory construction standards to guide municipal bodies and boards in their interpretations:
• Governing bodies and boards must construe the words and phrases of a local zoning ordinance according to rules of grammar and according to their common and approved usage, Section 1903(a) of the Statutory Construction Act, 1 Pa.C.S. Section 1903(a).
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