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LOS ANGELES — CBRE Group Inc. and U.S. Equities Realty LLC have announced they will combine their Chicago area operations. U.S. Equities Realty leases and manages 17 million square feet of commercial space in Chicago, including the Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower) and 2.5 million square feet along Michigan Avenue. It also has completed real estate transactions with companies such as Winston & Strawn, Boston Consulting Group, IBM, Hinshaw & Culbertson, Ventas, Lurie Children’s Hospital, Taft, Stettinus & Hollister, Nike, Verizon Wireless and Crate & Barrel. “Throughout our 36-year history, U.S. Equities has aggressively pursued every opportunity to anticipate the changing needs of our clients,” says Bob Wislow, chairman and CEO of U.S. Equities. “CBRE’s global platform, along with its extensive service offering and broad expertise, will expand and enhance our ability to serve clients — in Chicago and around the world — and to provide additional growth opportunities for our professionals. In turn, the development/program management, owner’s representation and consulting services we provide will strengthen the services CBRE can provide to its clients. Joining CBRE builds upon our solid foundation of success while enabling us to continue our strong, historic commitment to the city of Chicago and its important …

NEW HYDE PARK, N.Y. — Kimco Realty Corp. (NYSE: KIM) has acquired a portfolio of 10 shopping centers from its joint venture with SEB Asset Management for $275.8 million, including the assumption of $193.6 million of mortgage debt. Kimco, which previously held a 15 percent ownership interest in these properties, paid approximately $69.8 million for the remaining 85 percent equity interest held by SEB Asset Management, the group´s specialist real estate manager. The 1.4 million-square-foot portfolio is located in markets in the Mid-Atlantic region. The predominantly grocery-anchored portfolio is 95.4 percent occupied and its anchors include Giant Food, Harris Teeter, Weis Markets, Safeway, Food Lion with Kroger and Sam’s Club as shadow anchors. The properties also feature a well-known lineup of national retailers including Ross Stores, Bed Bath & Beyond, Marshalls, Kohl’s, PetSmart, and Michaels with Target and Lowes as shadow anchors. This transaction represents the third joint venture portfolio acquisition by Kimco in 2014. Year to date, the company has added 25 joint venture properties with a gross value of $776.9 million and 3.2 million square feet to its wholly owned portfolio. These properties boast occupancy and average rent per square foot of 96.3 percent and $16.71, respectively. Kimco …

GRANDVIEW HEIGHTS, OHIO — Nationwide Realty Investors (NRI), the real estate arm of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co., has proposed to the Grandview Heights City Council development plans for a new corporate campus at Grandview Yard. The Grandview Yard mixed-use development in Grandview Heights outside Columbus currently includes 92,000 square feet of office space, a 42,000-square-foot LA Fitness location, a 126,000-square-foot Hyatt Place hotel and 154 luxury apartment units. Nationwide’s development plans at Grandview Yard include the new 500,000-square-foot campus designed to support more than 3,000 associates, a 135-room hotel and a 13,000-square-foot conference center. The projects proposed represent more than $100 million in private investment. “This proposal represents a great win for our entire community, both the city of Grandview Heights and the overall Grandview area,” said City Council President Anthony Panzera. “We are thrilled that NRI is willing to make this commitment and we look forward to working closely with [them] to finalize the details.” The proposed Nationwide campus, located along Yard Street between Goodale Boulevard and Third Avenue, would include three, four-story interconnected office buildings with three adjacent four-level parking structures. The first building would include 320,000 square feet of space and open in 2016. The second building …

JACKSONVILLE, FLA. — Parmenter Realty Partners has sold the Bank of America Tower in Jacksonville for $88 million. Hertz Investment Group of Santa Monica, Calif., was the buyer, according to The Florida-Times Union. The 42-story, granite-clad, trophy office tower comprises 696,672 square feet and has been Jacksonville’s perennial skyline landmark since its completion in 1990. “During our ownership of the Bank of America Tower, we made significant improvements on the building’s sustainability, and the building became the first office tower in Jacksonville to achieve LEED certification in 2011,” says Darryl Parmenter, chairman and CEO of Parmenter Realty Partners. “Our investment in a number of physical and procedural improvements, and undertaking energy conservation measures, resulted in measurable utility savings for the building.” Parmenter Realty Partners is the managing member of ownership group Jacksonville Tower Associates, which paid $74.7 million for the tower in 1999, according to The Florida-Times Union. At the time of sale, the building was 69 percent occupied. The Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) has recognized the tower as “The Outstanding Building of the Year” nine times during the last 15 years, according to Parmenter Realty Partners. The building also received the “Best of the Best” award from …

CHICAGO — Aviv REIT Inc. (NYSE: AVIV) has acquired several seniors housing properties and land parcels in Massachusetts for $94.2 million. The Chicago-based REIT acquired two assisted living facilities and one post-acute and long-term care skilled nursing facility for $82 million. Aviv also purchased two parcels of land and the entitlements for the construction of two new assisted living facilities and a 50-unit addition to an existing assisted living facility for $12.2 million. The acquired properties include a 126-unit assisted living facility and a 72-unit skilled nursing facility located in West Yarmouth; and a 93-unit assisted living facility located in Weston, a suburb of Boston. The new construction projects include two assisted living facilities in West Yarmouth and an assisted living facility in Brewster. “This deal demonstrates our ability to opportunistically acquire high-quality seniors housing properties at attractive valuations, complementing our primary investment strategy of acquiring post-acute and long-term care skilled nursing facilities,” says Craig Bernfield, chairman and CEO of Aviv. The properties will be triple-net leased to existing Aviv operator Maplewood Senior Living, an operator of 12 facilities in three states that are triple-net leased from Aviv. “We further diversified our high-quality portfolio, adding best-in-class private pay healthcare properties …

LOS ANGELES — Vornado Realty Trust (NYSE: VNO) has completed the previously announced sale of Beverly Connection, a power shopping center in Los Angeles, for $260 million. The property’s tenants include Old Navy, Nordstrom Rack, Men’s Wearhouse and Marshalls. The 335,000-square-foot center is located at La Cienega and Beverly boulevards across the street from the Beverly Center, an upscale shopping mall with 160 retailers and dining options. The sales price is comprised of $239 million in cash and $21 million in 10-year seller financing. The sale resulted in a net gain of approximately $44 million for Vornado, which will be recognized in the third quarter. Vornado did not disclose the buyer, but the Los Angeles Times reported that the buyer is Ashkenazy Acquisition Corp., a New York-based private real estate investment firm. Michael Alpert, president of Ashkenazy Acquisition Corp., revealed that the company plans to invest an additional $500 million in the greater Los Angeles area in the near term. The company owns more than 100 retail, office and residential properties in the United States and Canada valued at $5 billion. Vornado Realty Trust is a fully integrated equity real estate investment trust (REIT) based in Paramus, New Jersey. Vornado’s …

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Republic Properties Corp. has received a $255 million refinancing for Portals III, the company’s 509,935-square-foot office building in Washington, D.C. The Class A property is located at 1201 Maryland Ave. S.W. in the Southwest Riverfront submarket. The 10-story building is situatedin the master-planned Portals development, one of the largest, privately held developments in the area. Portals III is currently 78 percent leased. Korean Exchange Bank provided a $160 million senior debt facility, while Samsung SRA made a $95 million equity investment. The debt and equity facility will extend the capitalization for another five years with sufficient funds for future leasing cost requirements. David Webb and Jamie Butler led the team from CBRE’S Mid-Atlantic Debt and Structured Finance Group, which arranged the refinancing on behalf of Republic Properties Corp. “Samsung SRA’s key management staff approached us expressing an interest in investing in the Portals III building,” says Steven Grigg, president of Republic Properties. “In a remarkably short time, we established a relationship which allowed us to replace and simplify the capital structure of the project to the mutual benefit of all involved. Even though the transaction is about a quarter of a billion dollars, it came down to …

DANVERS, MASS. — The DSF Group, a Waltham, Mass.-based real estate investment and development firm, has purchased Avalon Danvers for $108.5 million, or $250,500 per unit. The sales price is the highest price recorded for a single-property multifamily transaction in Massachusetts so far this year, and is the single-largest transaction that the Southern Essex County Registry of Deeds has ever recorded. The DSF Group purchased the 433-unit asset from AvalonBay Communities Inc., a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) based in Arlington, Va., that develops, manages and acquires multifamily properties. Institutional Property Advisors (IPA), a brokerage division of commercial real estate services firm Marcus & Millichap, has arranged the sale of Avalon Danvers. IPA Boston executive director Richard Robinson, along with associate directors Philip Lamere and Jennifer Athas, brokered the sale. “Avalon provided us with a unique opportunity to identify the right investor for this extraordinary asset,” says Robinson. “Our long experience in the Boston-area marketplace keeps us prepared to provide clients with the data they need to make informed investment decisions and close transactions quickly. These two abilities proved to be key elements in the disposition of Avalon Danvers.” As part of the sale, the asset will be …

LOS ANGELES — Clarion Partners has acquired Latitude 34, a 301,642-square-foot office campus within the master-planned community of Playa Vista, for a reported $132 million. The two-building campus is located along Millennium Drive in the Westside submarket, minutes from Los Angeles International Airport. Clarion plans to implement a capital improvement program at the property, in addition to new landscaping and creative speculative suites. The design will be handled by Gensler. “This premier property will offer tenants a dynamic, high-performance office environment designed for creativity and collaboration, located within a vital 'live/work/play' setting that is attracting prominent media, advertising and high-tech groups,” says Khalid Rashid, vice president of Clarion. ASB Real Estate Investments was the seller. Lincoln Property Company and L.A. Realty Partners will be retained as the leasing and management entities. “This acquisition gives us a significant position in one of the fastest-growing submarkets in Los Angeles,” says Rick Schaupp, Clarion's director and portfolio manager. “Our intention is to create a new breed of workplace, one where ideas become opportunities and people move fluidly between work spaces — indoors and outdoors — in order to connect and enjoy a sense of community.” — Nellie Day