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GREENVILLE, N.C. — For much of the last 15 years, Mayfaire Town Center in Wilmington, North Carolina, was the focal point of Greenville-based BrodyCo and for its president, H.J. Brody. Brody, along with the Zimmer family, developed Mayfaire on the site of a former farmstead outside Wilmington and lured many national retailers to the market for the first time. Built over three phases, Mayfaire Town Center ultimately became 610,000 square feet; Brody also developed a neighboring grocery-anchored center that was over 200,000 square feet. On June 18, it was announced that CBL & Associates — the Chattanooga, Tennessee-based REIT and a dominant owner of regional centers in North Carolina — had purchased Mayfaire Towne Center for $192 million. “For where we were and what we could do with our resources for the project, the timing made sense for us to sell,” said H.J. Brody in an interview with Shopping Center Business. “CBL was a strategic buyer for the property because of its presence in the market.” Brody saw CBL as a strong choice because of the company’s position in the Southeast and Carolinas, and for what the company had done with Friendly Center in Greensboro, North Carolina. At 1.2 million …

TOLEDO, OHIO, AND TORONTO — Health Care REIT Inc. (NYSE: HCN) and Revera Inc. (Revera) have entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Regal Lifestyle Communities Inc. (Regal) (TSX: RLC) through an existing 75/25 joint venture for a total value of approximately CA$766 million, or US$623 million. Toronto-based Regal is a publicly traded corporation that owns and operates 23 seniors housing communities with over 3,600 units. The private-pay portfolio includes 13 communities in Ontario, seven in Quebec, and one each in British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland. Approximately 83 percent of the portfolio’s net operating income is derived from Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa and Vancouver. HCN will have a 75 percent stake in the portfolio and Revera will own 25 percent. “Together with our partner, Revera, we continue to deliver compelling housing and care settings for Canada’s growing senior population,” says Tom DeRosa, CEO of Toledo-based HCN. “The acquisition of Regal is a rare opportunity to add a large, high-quality, private-pay portfolio concentrated in Canada’s largest metropolitan markets, where there is strong underlying demand.” The acquisition price represents a per-share cost of CA$12. The initial cash yield is expected to be 6.1 percent and to be immediately accretive to funds from operations …

San Francisco — Gap Inc. is streamlining its retail business by slimming its store count to 800 Gap stores in North America, the company outlined in a statement ahead of an investor meeting scheduled today. The company plans to close 175 stores in North America over the next few years, with 140 of those store closings occurring in Gap’s current fiscal year. (Gap’s fiscal year runs February through January.) When complete, Gap will have 500 Gap stores and 300 outlet and factory stores in North America. As part of the process, Gap will also shed about 250 employees in its corporate workforce. It is a move that Global President Jeff Kirwan, who was appointed to the position in December 2014, says will enhance the customer experience across all of the retailer’s channels: online and in-store. “Our customers and employees want Gap to win,” said Kirwan in the statement. “We’re focused on offering consistent, on-brand product collections and enhancing the customer experience across all of our channels, including a smaller, more vibrant fleet of stores.” The move comes as Gap has struggled to find its footing in the marketplace. Gap must right-size its portfolio, as well as recapture its customer base. In recent …

TORONTO — Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE: SLF), a Toronto-based life insurer, has announced its acquisition of Bentall Kennedy Group for a purchase price of USD$454 million. Bentall Kennedy is a real estate investment manager operating in Canada and the U.S., with corporate offices in Toronto, Vancouver and Seattle. The acquisition is part of Sun Life’s strategy to broaden its asset management pillar by expanding and diversifying the capabilities of Sun Life Investment Management, the company’s real estate investment management arm that services third parties and manages Sun Life’s general account. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2015, subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals. “The acquisition of Bentall Kennedy is a perfect fit with Sun Life’s four-pillar strategy,” says Dean Connor, CEO of Sun Life Financial. “It expands and diversifies our asset management pillar, with one of the most respected names in real estate.” The two firms will combine their real estate investment management teams and Bentall Kennedy will be a unit of Sun Life Investment Management. Bentall Kennedy will retain its brand name and be Sun Life’s exclusive real estate investment management platform. Bentall Kennedy will also have the ability to offer …

NEW YORK — NorthStar Healthcare Income Inc. has acquired a $639.3 million portfolio of continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) from subsidiaries of Fountains Senior Living Holdings LLC. The portfolio will continue to be operated by Watermark Retirement Communities Inc., a national operator of seniors housing facilities and affiliate of The Freshwater Group, Inc. In connection with the acquisition, NorthStar Healthcare obtained fixed-rate financing through Freddie Mac’s multifamily-seniors housing loan program, with an aggregate principal amount of $410 million, a fixed interest rate of 3.9 percent and a term of seven years. The portfolio consists of 15 CCRCs and 23 contracted life estate units, including 3,637 units located in 11 states, with the largest concentrations in New York, California, Florida and Michigan. The six entrance-fee properties were acquired directly by NorthStar Healthcare and leased to affiliates of Freshwater pursuant to a master net lease. The nine rental properties were purchased by a joint venture between NorthStar Healthcare and an affiliate of Freshwater, which own 97 percent and 3 percent of the joint venture, respectively, and will be operated by an affiliate of Freshwater pursuant to long-term management agreements. Occupancy of the portfolio was 85 percent as of March 31. “Watermark is a …

CHANHASSEN, MINN. AND NEW YORK — Life Time Fitness Inc., a fitness center chain headquartered in the Minneapolis suburb of Chanhassen, Minn., has entered into a sale-leaseback transaction with Gramercy Property Trust Inc. (NYSE: GPT), a real estate investment trust (REIT) based in New York City. As per the sale-leaseback agreement, Gramercy will acquire a portfolio of 10 high-end fitness centers from Life Time Fitness for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $300.5 million. The REIT will then lease the portfolio back to Life Time Fitness for a 20-year term. For the combined portfolio, net operating income is anticipated to be approximately $19.5 million in the first year of the agreement. The portfolio totals approximately 1.3 million square feet located in major markets across the United States. The $300.5 million sale-leaseback transaction comes on the heels of an investor group’s acquisition of Life Time Fitness Inc., which is valued at more than $4 billion. The investor group is led by affiliates of Leonard Green & Partners and TPG. Other key investors include LNK Partners and Bahram Akradi, Life Time Fitness’ chairman, president and CEO. Up until yesterday, Life Time Fitness traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the stock …