Local zoning limits office buildings to four stories.

A variance is the appropriate form of zoning relief contemplated by the facts, making A correct. A variance authorizes departure from applicable zoning requirements when the statutory standards are satisfied. A request to construct six stories where dimensional zoning allows only four is therefore fundamentally a variance issue.

A nonconforming use concerns a use or structure that lawfully existed before a zoning restriction changed and is permitted to continue subject to statutory and local rules. The facts instead describe a proposed new deviation from existing zoning. Title V primarily concerns Massachusetts septic-system and subsurface sewage disposal requirements; it does not waive building-height limitations. “Police power exclusion” is not a standard zoning remedy available to a private owner.

A significant current-law point is that Massachusetts amended M.G.L. c.40A §10 effective in 2026. Candidates should use the current statutory variance standards rather than memorize obsolete wording from older preparation materials. The permit-granting authority evaluates the statutory criteria and the circumstances of the parcel and proposed relief.

Study Guide Reference: Land Use Controls and Regulations — zoning, variances and nonconforming uses; M.G.L. c.40A §10.