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NASHVILLE — Spectrum | Emery and OliverMcMillan have partnered to transform the 1.9 million-square-foot Nashville Convention Center site at 500 Broadway in downtown Nashville into a mixed-use development featuring retail, residential, office, dining and entertainment. The planned redevelopment, which will reportedly cost $400 million, still has several municipal approvals to clear before construction can begin. The developers are expected to break ground in summer 2015 on the project, which could take two and a half years to complete. The proposed development calls for the demolition of the existing convention center structure, which originally opened in 1987. The transformation will include 215,000 square feet of retail, entertainment and dining space; 350 apartments; an 18-story office tower spanning approximately 300,000 square feet; a 140,000-square-foot conference center; an additional 60,000 square feet of offices above the retail space; and the previously announced 40,000-square-foot National Museum of African American Music. “This partnership will not only enhance this project, but also raise the bar for what downtown Nashville can offer both residents and visitors, further igniting it as the heart for commerce, creativity and convenience,” says Pat Emery, president of Spectrum | Emery. Gresham Smith & Partners and Gensler are the project’s architects. The general …

HUNT VALLEY, MD. AND CHICAGO — Omega Healthcare Investors (NYSE: OHI) and Aviv REIT (NYSE: AVIV) have agreed to merge in a blockbuster deal. Omega will acquire all of the outstanding shares of Aviv. The transaction values Aviv at $3 billion. Omega company officials say that the transaction creates the “premier publicly traded pure-play skilled nursing facility REIT.” The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2015. The combined company will have a diversified portfolio that includes 83 operator relationships in 41 states. Aviv shareholders will receive a fixed exchange ratio of 0.90 Omega shares for each share of Aviv common stock they own, per the agreement. This consideration would be equivalent to $34.97 of Omega stock for each Aviv share, representing a premium to Aviv shareholders of about 16.2 percent over Aviv’s stock price. Omega shareholders are expected to own about 70 percent and Aviv shareholders, together with the limited partners of Aviv Healthcare Properties Limited Partnership, will own 30 percent of the combined company. The stock-for-stock transaction is intended to be tax-free to shareholders. Following the merger, Taylor Pickett, Omega’s CEO, will continue to serve as CEO of the combined company, while Craig Bernfield, current …

TAMPA — Crescent Communities has sold Crescent Bayshore, an apartment complex in Tampa, for $111.5 million. This is the first closing of a portfolio of nine multifamily properties developed by Crescent. Crescent has finalized the sales with a fund advised by UBS Global Asset Management and an unnamed private institutional buyer. The portfolio includes a total of 2,667 units. Crescent Bayshore contains 367 units located in downtown Tampa, and the sale represents a price in excess of $300,000 per unit. The entire transaction will allow Crescent to recapitalize the portfolio at a gross purchase price approaching $700 million. CBRE advised Crescent on the transaction. “For over 50 years, Crescent Communities has been unwavering in its commitment to bettering people’s lives by building sustainable communities that deliver long-term value to both investors and residents,” says Todd Mansfield, president and CEO of Crescent Communities. “Our ability to transact this multifamily portfolio at these values, even prior to the completion of leasing, speaks to the strength of our strategy and the long term value the market sees in our communities, and it will help fund our further expansion.” Crescent has committed approximately $725 million of debt and equity capital into building a portfolio …

DETROIT — Fifth Third Bank Eastern Michigan plans to relocate its headquarters from its current location in Southfield to downtown Detroit. The relocation includes an investment of $85 million in the city’s resurgence. With more than 150 full-time employees, Fifth Third Bank’s new offices will occupy four floors encompassing 62,000 square feet with options for future growth at One Woodward Avenue, one of more than 60 properties owned and operated by Bedrock Real Estate Services. The skyscraper will be renamed Fifth Third Bank at One Woodward. “Fifth Third Bank has long been a citizen of Detroit’s neighborhoods having built numerous branches within city limits during the past decade,” says David Girodat, president and CEO of Fifth Third Bank Eastern Michigan. “Now that we’ve established a footprint in the city, we wanted to move our headquarters to be part of the downtown movement and contribute to the remarkable resurgence Detroit is experiencing.” Built in 1962, the 29-story landmark office tower was the first skyscraper designed by architect Minoru Yamasaki, best known as the architect of the World Trade Center. Yamasaki used elements of the 361,100 square foot building’s design for the Twin Towers in New York City. The bank’s move is …

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A joint venture between TIAA-CREF and Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), manager of the Norwegian Government Pension Fund Global, has acquired a 364,000-square-foot trophy office building in Washington, D.C. for $392 million. The joint venture purchased the property located at 800 17th St. N.W. from PNC Financial Services Group. “This unique property is exceptionally located and provides long-term income from established tenants,” says Suzan Amato, head of strategic joint ventures for TIAA-CREF. “We look forward to continuing to source prime assets on behalf of the joint venture.” Developed in 2010, the property includes an expansive rooftop deck, a glass curtain wall and a tenant amenity package and is LEED Platinum certified. Pittsburgh-based PNC Financial Services Group and Vornado/Charles E. Smith developed the building, according to the Washington Business Journal. The property consists of 96 percent office and 4 percent retail. Long-term tenants include the law firm Holland & Knight and PNC Bank. The building served as the national bank’s regional headquarters. The building is located in the central business district at the corner of 17th and H streets N.W., and is two blocks south of The White House and near Farragut Square Park. TIAA-CREF and NBIM are …

ALEXANDRIA, VA. — A joint venture between American Real Estate Partners and Investcorp has acquired Canal Center, a 540,000-square-foot office complex in Alexandria, for $176 million. The Class A complex is located at 44 Canal Center Plaza. Tishman Speyer was the seller. The four-building complex is situated on the banks of the Potomac River, just minutes from downtown Washington, D.C., and Reagan National Airport. “This acquisition adheres to Investcorp’s approach of targeting properties located in major metropolitan areas with attractive yields and near-and long-term upside potential,” says Herb Myers, managing director in Investcorp’s real estate group. Canal Center was originally built in 1987. It is currently 83 percent leased. No major leases expire until 2018. “The northern Old Town Alexandria submarket has been going through a dramatic redevelopment in the last several years and is one of the few urban mixed-use markets outside of Washington, D.C.,” says Brian Katz, president of American Real Estate Partners. “Alexandria is one of the strongest markets in the Washington metropolitan area and Canal Center enjoys an unparalleled location within the city and the Washington, D.C., region. Couple this with the extensive capital improvement projects we have planned, and we believe that Canal Center will …

YONKERS, N.Y. — Ginsburg Development Cos. (GDC) has begun construction on the $100 million River Tides at Greystone, a 330-unit luxury apartment complex. The apartment complex is one of the largest residential developments to be built in Yonkers in recent years. Located a short walk from the Greystone Metro-North station, the complex will include Manhattan-style finishes and amenities as well as views of the Hudson River and the Palisades. River Tides at Greystone marks the launch of the Ginsburg’s new GDC Rentals brand of luxury rental apartment buildings. “Set against the backdrop of one of the most spectacular views in North America, we are extremely excited to break ground on River Tides, which will become a flagship property of the new GDC Rentals brand,” says Martin Ginsburg, principal of GDC. Designed in a contemporary architecture with expansive exterior corner walls of glass, the 10-story River Tides at Greystone will feature a mix of studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom units, many with views of the Hudson. Amenities include full concierge service, two-story lobby, club lounge, fitness and wellness center with available personal trainers, yoga classes and spa treatments, and a resort-style swimming pool and deck with cabana seating, seven barbeque stations, …

IRVINE, CALIF. — American Healthcare Investors and Griffin Capital Corp., the co-sponsors of Griffin-American Healthcare REIT III Inc., have entered into an agreement to acquire the Independence Medical Office Building Portfolio for $135 million. The portfolio is comprised of five buildings totaling approximately 461,000 square feet in New York, N.Y.; Verona and Morristown, N.J.; Somerville, Mass.; and Southgate, Ky. The portfolio is more than 96 percent leased, according to Griffin-American Healthcare REIT III. “The acquisition of Independence Medical Office Building Portfolio will significantly expand Griffin-American Healthcare REIT III in core urban areas located near major academic and healthcare institutions,” says Danny Prosky, president and CEO of Griffin-American Healthcare REIT III. Earlier this month, Griffin-American Healthcare REIT III entered agreements to acquire Premier Medical Office Building, a 45,000-square-foot medical office building in Novi, Mich. for approximately $12 million; The Merion Building, a 73,000-square-foot medical office building in King of Prussia, Penn. for approximately $19 million; and the Mount Olympia Medical Office Building Portfolio, comprised of three medical office buildings in Columbus, Ohio, Mount Dora, Fla., and Olympia Fields, Ill., for approximately $16 million. Griffin-American has also completed a number of acquisitions since the beginning of September 2014, acquiring five healthcare-related buildings …