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LAS VEGAS — Penn National Gaming Inc. (NASDAQ: PENN) has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Tropicana Las Vegas Casino Hotel Resort from its shareholders, the largest of which is a partnership between Onex and Alex Yemenidjian, for $360 million. Penn National intends to fund the acquisition through an expansion of its existing credit facilities and cash on hand. Tropicana Las Vegas sits on 35 acres at the corner of Tropicana Boulevard and Las Vegas Boulevard, 2.5 miles from McCarran International Airport on the southern end of the Las Vegas Strip. The property features nearly 1,500 guest rooms including 181 suites. Amenities at the property include a 50,000-square-foot casino with over 1,000 gaming positions, a sports book, three full-service restaurants, a food court, a 1,200-seat performance theater, the 300-seat Laugh Factory comedy club, over 100,000 square feet of exhibition and meeting space, a five-acre tropical beach event area and spa. Over the past four years, Tropicana Las Vegas has completed more than $200 million of property upgrades including a complete renovation of all guest rooms, which feature a new South Beach theme. In addition, improvements were made to the ballroom, conference meeting space and Pavilion exhibition space, the showcase …

CHARLESTON, S.C. — Bennett Hospitality has broken ground on a $101 million, 185-key hotel project located at King Street and Marion Square in downtown Charleston. The more than 200,000-square-foot, eight-story luxury hotel will feature 185 guest rooms and a grand lobby entrance off King Street. A bi-level, fine-dining restaurant overlooking one of Charleston’s most renowned green spaces, Marion Square, and a separate full bar and lounge area will be among the hotel’s amenities. Additionally, patrons will have access to a rooftop pool with cabanas and bar, along with a full-service spa. Meeting space — some located on the roof — and a ballroom will also be available. “I worked on this hotel for 12 years to get all of the entitlements required,” says Michael Bennett, founder and owner of Bennett Hospitality. “Beautiful limestone, marble, bronze and copper — it will be built the way they built buildings 100 years ago. It will be built to last.” Marion Square is a 6.5-acre greenspace in downtown Charleston that served as the green for the Citadel military college in the 19th century and early 20th century. Today it serves as a public park under lease by the city of Charleston. Balfour Beatty Construction …

HOUSTON — Goddard Investment Group has sold 801 Travis, a 21-story, 220,380-square-foot office tower in downtown Houston. The buyer, LPC Realty Advisors I LP, an affiliate of Lincoln Property Co., purchased the office building on behalf of a pension fund client for an undisclosed amount. The office building is connected to the JW Marriott, which uses the office building’s 12th floor for its spa, fitness center, VIP lounge and executive offices. The hotel’s meeting space is also located on the lower level of 801 Travis. Originally constructed in 1981 and renovated in 2014, the office tower was 82.8 percent leased at the time of sale. In addition to the hotel’s amenities, the office building features an 11-story, 445-space parking garage. The office tower is located adjacent to two METRORail lines and is connected to the downtown tunnel system. The property is also situated near downtown Houston’s Theater District, George R. Brown Convention Center, Minute Maid Park and the Toyota Center. Dan Miller and Martin Hogan led HFF’s investment sales brokerage team to market 801 Travis on behalf of Goddard Investment Group. Goddard Investment was founded in 2000 in Atlanta. The commercial real estate investment firm has acquired and managed approximately …

NEW YORK — General Growth Properties Inc. (NYSE: GGP), along with billionaire investor Jeff Sutton, Vladislav Doronin’s Capital Group and real estate developer Michael Shvo, has acquired The Crown Building, located at 730 Fifth Avenue in New York City, for $1.78 billion. The Crown Building is a 26-story retail and office property located on the southwest corner of 57th Street and 5th Avenue in the Plaza District in midtown Manhattan. The acquisition was partially funded with $1.25 billion of secured debt. GGP and Sutton will own, redevelop, lease and manage the retail portion of the property. The retail portion, which totals approximately 100,000 square feet, is currently occupied by tenants such as Bulgari, Piaget and Mikimoto. Over the past 25 years, Sutton has amassed over 120 properties in prime locations throughout New York City. Sutton’s acquisitions include the purchase of 724 Fifth Avenue, 720 Fifth Avenue, 717 Fifth Avenue, 650 Fifth Avenue, 609 Fifth Avenue and 509 Fifth Avenue. Capital Group and Shvo will redevelop, lease and manage the office tower from floors four through 26, comprising approximately 290,000 square feet. The office tower will be redeveloped into luxury residential condominiums. According to media reports, the sales price of approximately …

NEW YORK, N.Y. — Meridian Capital Group has arranged $325 million in acquisition financing for the purchase of the leasehold interest in an office property located in New York. Meridian arranged the financing for the borrower, RXR Realty LLC. GE Capital provided the five-year loan, which includes a fixed interest rate below 3 percent and interest-only payments for the full term. Rael Gervis of Meridian Capital Group’s New York City headquarters negotiated the financing. The 36-story office property was built in 1987 and is located at 32 Old Slip between Front and South streets. Architect Edward Durell Stone & Associates designed the 1.2-million-square-foot, Class A office tower. The property’s largest tenant is American International Group, whose 260,000-square-foot lease expires at the end of 2017. Other tenants in the building include Daiwa Capital Markets America, Crystal & CO., the U.S. Department of Education and the United States Census Bureau. 32 Old Slip is located on the Manhattan waterfront directly across from the Pier 11 ferry terminal. The property is within a short walking distance from several subway lines and the Staten Island ferry. The office tower also includes unobstructed views of the East River, Downtown Brooklyn and New York harbor. RXR …