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MIAMI — I&G Miami Inc. has acquired the iconic Miami Tower from an affiliate of Atlanta-based Wealth Capital Investments for $105.5 million in what is being touted as one of the largest real estate transactions in Miami this year. Designed by I.M. Pei and constructed in 1987, Miami Tower contains 600,000 square feet of Class A office space. Occupancy was 80 percent at the time of closing, and tenants at the building include UBS Financial Services, Vector Group and several law firms. The building contains a host of amenities that include a sky lobby and terrace on the 11th floor, three restaurants, a health club, a 150-seat auditorium, a florist and a hair salon. The building contains 20,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space that is tenanted by the café Au Bon Pain, U.S. Century Bank and a dry cleaners. Miami Tower also contains a dedicated Metro Rail station and is connected to the Miami Convention Center and the Hyatt Regency Miami. The seller, Blue Capital US East Coast Properties LP, recently completed a $2 million capital improvements program to the building. Part of the renovations focused on increasing the energy efficiency of the building. The Holliday Fenoglio Fowler team …

ARLINGTON, VA. — ING Clarion Partners has acquired an Arlington apartment community in a $118.5 million deal. Millennium at Metropolitan Park was completed this year. It is located at 1330 S. Fair St. near the Crystal City submarket and within three blocks of a Metro subway station. Millennium at Metropolitan Park is an 18-story tower that contains 300 apartments and 7,800 square feet of ground-floor retail space. The residences comprise 17 studio units, 155 one-bedrooms, 125 two-bedrooms and three three-bedrooms. The average unit size is 932 square feet. Community amenities include concierge service and the 11,000-square-foot, rooftop Metropolitan Club. “We have historically viewed the Northern Virginia-Washington, D.C., corridor very positively,” said Marc DeLuca, director of ING Clarion, in a statement. “The area continues to be resilient with above-average growth in population and median household income. The Millennium at Metropolitan Park is a top-quality building and is well positioned to benefit from these strong fundamentals.” The seller's name was not released. — Coleman Wood

NEW YORK CITY — The next step to making Manhattan's expansive Hudson Yards project a reality was reached last week when Related Companies and Oxford Properties Group entered into a contract with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to begin site preparation work. This stage of development will include the demolition of the site's vacant Metals Purchasing Building to make way for the construction of the project's first buildings. Tishman Construction Co. will manage the demolition of the 60,000-square-foot building, which will take four months to complete. Related and Oxford are waiting for tenant commitments to begin construction of Hudson Yards' office component, which could come as early as 2012. The first building could be complete as early as 2015. “We have seen a great deal of interest from large-scale corporate tenants and are excited to be taking the steps necessary to meet their aggressive timelines,” said Jay Cross, president of Related Oxford Hudson Yards, the joint venture affiliate developing the project, in a statement. “Hudson Yards will represent New York's premier mixed-use neighborhood, and we are progressing steadily.” Hudson Yards represents a massive undertaking. The project is being constructed, in part, atop the Caemmerer Rail Yard, and the construction of …

NEW YORK CITY — Bethesda, Md.-based multifamily lender Walker & Dunlop is getting a jump on what it sees as the imminent turnaround of the commercial real estate industry by completing its plan to go public. The company began trading on the New York Stock Exchange December 15 under the ticker symbol “WD”. Walker & Dunlop priced 10 million shares of common stock at a price of $10 per share. For the lender, going public provides it with the high brand recognition its publicly traded competitors already have. As of last year, Walker & Dunlop was the ninth largest commercial real estate lender in the country and the 5th largest originator of Fannie Mae loans. It also provides the company with greater access to capital than it had as a private company. There are other benefits as well. “[Going public] opens up a whole new realm of opportunities for partnerships and growth, and attracting talented individuals to our platform,” says William Walker, chairman, president and CEO of Walker & Dunlop. The company will need the clout to help it achieve its long-term goals. Walker sees the next few years will see a much increased demand for commercial real estate loans …

FORT HOOD, TEXAS — The ceremonial groundbreaking has been held for the new Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center at Fort Hood. The $534 million project will replace the current medical center, which was originally built in 1965. The U.S. Army Medical Command and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will develop the new medical center on 70 acres near the original hospital. At 947,000 square feet, the new center is 60 percent larger than the current one. The new facility will feature a six-story hospital tower, three outpatient specialty clinic buildings and three parking garages. Of note, the new hospital will feature expanded behavioral health services, pediatrics, and maternity facilities. The number of patient beds will increase from 128 to 151, and the size of the operating rooms will increase. The new medical center will also be seeking LEED-Gold certification. The general contractor is a joint venture between Balfour Beatty Construction and McCarthy Building Companies. The projects architects are HKS Architects and Wingler & Sharp. According to Fort Hood officials, the new Darnall Medical Center is the largest project in the Department of Defense's medical construction program and the largest DOD project to be financed with funds from the …

NEW YORK CITY — Harbor Group International (HGI) has acquired 1412 Broadway, a trophy office tower located near Times Square in Midtown Manhattan, for $150 million. The company's near-term plans include completing a $10 million in capital improvements program for the building. Constructed in 1926, 1412 Broadway contains 415,135 square feet over 24 stories. The property was 84 percent leased at the time of closing to a tenant roster that includes fashion designers Jones New York and Escada. The building had recently undergone a repositioning program completed by the seller, Murray Hill Properties. As part of the project, the building's electrical and mechanical systems were modernized, the lobby entrance was refurbished, and elevator cabs and common areas were upgrades. HGI completed the purchase in a direct deal with Murray Hill Properties. Joel Siderow of Murray provided in-house representation for his company. “1412 Broadway presented an excellent opportunity to acquire a core office building in Manhattan's Times Square submarket,” said Jordan Slone, chairman and CEO of HGI, in a statement. “With little commercial development expected in the immediate future, the building will continue to appeal to a wide range of tenants and benefit from positive rental rate trends in a rapidly …

TEMPE, ARIZ. — Vestar Development Co. has partnered with Rockwood Capital to take ownership control of the Tempe Marketplace shopping center. The joint venture acquired the interest formerly controlled by DLG/Credit Suisse for $280 million. Vestar and DLG originally partnered to develop the 1.3 million-square-foot shopping center, which is located at the Loop 101 and 202 Freeway in Tempe, in 2007. Vestar will serve as the managing partner in the new joint venture. Concurrent with the deal's closing, Tempe Marketplace received $200 million in new permanent financing, which was provided by GACC. Vestar Marketplace was 94 percent occupied at the time of closing. Retail tenants at the regional center include JCPenney, Target, Best Buy, Old Navy, GAP and Barnes & Noble. Restaurants include California Pizza Kitchen, Lucille's Smokehouse Barb-B-Que, Cadillac Ranch, Maria Maria, Kabuki Japanese Restaurant and The Keg Steakhouse & Bar. Tempe Marketplace also contains entertainment options including the Harkins Tempe Marketplace 16 movie theater and Dave & Buster's. This is not the only deal in which Vestar is involved. While details could not be released, the company indicated that before the end of the year it will close on two California retail properties totaling approximately 400,000 square feet …