That's a tough call. I am certainly not dogmatic about taking the lane, and will usually do my best not to impede traffic. I make myself as visible as possible by using 2 tail-lights and wearing bright jerseys, and assume that if people can see me they won't hit me.

I've got a comparable tough spot on my commute home. It's a 4-lane road with turn lanes. The worst spot is a traffic light that catches me at least 90% of the time. The road is uphill at that point, and there are turn lanes to the left and right. So I have to stay in the second lane from the right (which is turn only), and cars are always trying to cut me off or drift over. I usually signal to the cars behind me that I am going straight because otherwise someone will assume I am going to stay all the way to the right.

After the light, I take the lane until I am through the intersection and then drift right. I stay far enough into the lane so I am clearly visible, but don't block the lane. The cars are going slow enough at that point, due to the red light, that I'm not worried about getting blown off the road. Long story short, I leave enough room for cars to pass me without having to cross the lane line, but I stay far enough from the curb to make myself visible. Actually, it's not safe for me to ride any closer to the curb because the pavement drops off sharply (due to a bad repaving job) about 3 feet from the curb, and there are also some bad drain grates.