Three locations now studied for Green Line support facility

Throughout the Green Line extension planning process, the State has preferred Yard 8 in the Inner Belt as the location for a support facility. Because of community opposition, the State says in the DEIR that it will now study two other potential locations as well.

The “Mirror H” site (proposed by the City of Somerville) straddles the Inner Belt area of Somerville and the NorthPoint area of Cambridge. The “Option L” site is located immediately adjacent to BET (the Boston Engine Terminal), outside the current BET fence line.

From the DEIR...

Preliminary analysis indicates that both alternative sites have impacts above and
beyond that of the Yard 8 alternative (e.g., Mirror H – renegotiation of MBTANorthPoint
agreement and Option L – relocation of active businesses). However, to
sufficiently compare the sites to the preferred Yard 8 location, a complete analysis of
both alternatives - including environmental impacts, schedule implications,
community benefits, property acquisition needs, regulatory issues, and costs to the
municipalities and the Commonwealth - will be performed over the next few weeks.
Results will be made available to the public for input and discussion once underway.
The outcome of the analyses will determine whether EOT chooses to pursue a Notice
of Project Change for the Green Line Extension Project, to formally substitute one of
the alternative options for Yard 8 as the preferred site for the storage and
maintenance facility.