The owners of 40 apartments in Dublin city centre have agreed to sell their homes for €550,000 – including a €40,000 fee for the inconvenience – to make way for the MetroLink rail project. The College Gate apartment block containing 70 homes on Townsend Street in Dublin 2 above the Markievicz Leisure Centre has been proposed for demolition to accommodate a MetroLink underground station.Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) has powers to pursue compulsory purchase orders (CPOs) of property required for the transport project that will link the city centre with Dublin Airport, but it has reached arrangements outside this process to buy some homes in College Gate.A representative acting on behalf of College Gate owners told The Irish Times that deals have been agreed for 40 apartments in the block of 70 homes on Townsend Street.TII has agreed to spend €22 million in total for the 40 apartments, which would equate to an average of €550,000 each. The price paid to owners, includes a €40,000 fee each to account for the inconvenience of being required to vacate the building. The remaining apartment owners will now be offered a “notice to treat” this month, which will require them to enter sale agreements with TII at predetermined market prices and without a €40,000 moving fee.A spokesman for TII’s MetroLink project said it could not comment on the sales process.“All discussions and potential agreements with individual landowners are strictly confidential. MetroLink is not in a position to comment further on individual properties, acquisition costs, or the status of specific negotiations,” he said.He confirmed TII has commenced the property acquisition process for MetroLink following the confirmation of the railway order for the project in October 2025. The College Gate apartment complex is one of a number in the city centre that are required to be purchased for the MetroLink project, including the nearby Ashford House office block on Tara Street.TII has sought to conclude a number of required property purchases for MetroLink outside of the CPO process in a bid avoid lengthy appeals and legal disputes over property valuations.It has been estimated by TII that close to €500 million will be spent buying property to accommodate the MetroLink project, which is projected to cost between €15 billion and €18 billion and forecast to begin construction in the summer of next year.