A diagram provided by MassDOT of the three maintenance site options. By Tom Nash After a two-year battle between Somerville and the state, transportation officials have approved a plan for a Green Line maintenance facility that won't encroach on an artist community in Brickbottom. As part of the mandated Green Line Extension Project, Massachusetts officials announced plans to put a maintenance facility on land it owns adjacent to the Brickbottom artist community in 2008, setting off a storm of criticism from residents and city officials that eventually led to two alternative plans, known as Mirror H and Option L. Both are mostly in Cambridge.

"The new location eliminates many of the negative neighborhood impacts associated with the original site proposed by MassDOT," the agency said in a statement, "and presents the best opportunities to further long-term planning and development objectives in the area."

During a series of public meetings, city officials and residents laid out the case against putting a maintenance facility in Brickbottom, arguing it would stifle commercial development while also drastically affecting the residents' quality of life.

Mayor Joseph Curtatone argued against putting the maintenance facility in Brickbottom, at one point saying the city would sue if the state refused to move forward with an alternative location.

Curtatone lauded the decision, announced Monday by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, to go with Option L.

"This is a momentous decision for the City of Somerville," he said in a statement. "Not only does the decision about where to locate the Green Line maintenance facility ensure that the Green Line expansion into Somerville remains on its 2014 timeline, the chosen location creates the opportunity for significant redevelopment inside the city's industrial Inner Belt.

"Best of all," he added, "this will help preserve the quality of life for nearby residents, notably those in the Brickbottom artist lofts."

The Somerville Transportation Equity Partnership (STEP) held a meeting Monday night to finalize plans for Green Line station community designs sessions that that will begin 6 p.m. Friday at the Prospect Hill Academy at 17 Franklin St. They also took time to talk about the just-announced victory.

"We've been pushing back for a year and a half," STEP member Karen Molloy said. "Did anyone bring champagne tonight?"