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SAN BERNARDINO, CALIF. — A joint venture between Behringer Harvard, CT Realty Investors, Westcore Properties and Pacific Coast Capital Partners has invested in El Cajon Distribution Center in San Bernardino. El Cajon consists of two buildings totaling 1.4 million square feet. The property is located on 63 acres at 7010 and 7140 N. Cajon Blvd. The distribution center provides direct access to interstates 15 and 215. It is also approximately 50 miles away from the Los Angeles area's intermodal rail yards and ports. Behringer Harvard made its investment in the property on behalf of Behringer Harvard Opportunity REIT II. In a statement, Behringer Harvard Chief Administrative Officer Jason Mattox said, “Delivered as the economic downturn took hold of the California and national economies, both buildings at El Cajon Distribution Center have never been occupied. However, these buildings have the attributes that most demanding industrial tenants desire. Given the growing interest industrial buildings of this caliber are seeing from the user community, as the economy begins to improve, we believe that the potential for tenanting the buildings is strong.” Details regarding the transaction were not disclosed. — Coleman Wood

RALEIGH, N.C. — In a time that is seeing few trophy deals in the entire North Carolina market, two luxury multifamily properties, both located in downtown Raleigh, have traded hands. Most recently, Mid-America Apartment Communities acquired Hue, located at 300 W. Hargett St., for $33.6 million. The 208-unit project was originally developed in the third quarter of 2009 as a luxury condominium project. However, it was foreclosed on by the lender, iStar Financial, without a single unit being sold. The community consists of seven stories of residences over street-level retail space, which was not included in the sale. Amenities include a pool, a fitness center, controlled access and covered parking. Phil Brosseau, Jr., with CB Richard Ellis' Carolina Multi-House Group represented the seller in the deal. Don Aldridge of Memphis Commercial Group led the team representing the buyer. Mid-America plans to lease the property as high-end apartments, with rents ranging from $995 for a studio to $2,300 for a two-bedroom. As news of Hue's sale came out, it was also revealed that Charlotte developer Crosland had recently sold 712 Tucker to J.P. Morgan Investment Management for $30 million in an off-market deal. Unlike Hue, 712 Tucker has enjoyed high occupancy …

SAN DIEGO — Wood Partners has acquired a distressed apartment project in San Diego with plans to complete the development of a 379-unit luxury apartment community. The property consists of a fully permitted 5.9-acre site located at 8798 Spectrum Center Blvd. within the 244-acre San Diego Spectrum master-planned community. The site was originally owned by Sunroad Enterprises, but development stalled out due to the recession. Construction is set to begin in September for the new community. It will consist of two four-story podium buildings over two levels of basement garage parking. At the heart of the project will be a two-story clubhouse with an outdoor pool area. Features of the pool area will include cabanas, barbecue pits, a waterfall, trellises and a spa. The clubhouse will include an outdoor deck, a fitness center and wireless internet access. Wood Partners also plans to construct a 2-acre public park in front of the community. The park will be owned by the City of San Diego. In addition to the land purchase, Wood Partners acquired the original site plans and building permits, which will allow construction to commence immediately. The estimated first move-ins will occur in the first quarter of 2012. The estimated …

CHICAGO — Ricker-Murphy Development and an affiliate of GE Pension Trust have secured a $170 million construction loan for the development of a new residential condominium tower in Chicago. The lender is a consortium led by the Americas division of Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. Known as Lincoln Park 2520, the project will be the first new residential condo high-rise constructed in Chicago's in almost three decades. “What you have here is a very unique location in just a fabulous setting, which is 3.5 acres overlooking three bodies of water — North Pond, Diversey Harbor and Lake Michigan,” says John Murphy, principal for Ricker-Murphy Development. Current plans call for the construction of a three-tower building at 2520 N. Lakeview Ave. The north and south towers will be 22 and 16 stories, respectively, and the central tower will be 39 stories. The 228 residences will be a mix of one to four bedrooms and range in size from 899 to 4,703 square feet. Prices will range from $1 million to $5.7 million. The towers will also contain several penthouses ranging in size from 3,500 to 8,300 square feet and ranging in price from $4 million to $11 million. In addition to its …

PHILADELPHIA — Philadelphia-based Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust (PREIT) has agreed to sell its interest in seven power center to Cedar Shopping Centers. In the first part of the transaction, PREIT will sell five of its wholly owned centers for approximately $134 million. The properties total 936,000 square feet and include Sunrise Plaza in Forked River, N.J.; Pitney Road Plaza in Lancaster, Pa.; Monroe Marketplace in Selinsgrove, Pa.; Creekview Center in Warrington, Pa.; and New River Valley Center in Forked River, N.J. In the second part of the deal, PREIT will sell its 50 percent interest in two shopping centers. The first is Whitehall Mall in Allentown, Pa., and the second is Red Rose Commons in Lancaster. The two properties contain a total of 821,000 square feet, and PREIT's interest in them is worth approximately $34 million. Its proportionate share the the properties' mortgage debt is $18 million. A portion of the proceeds from this deal will be used to repay the properties' mortgages and to release two properties securing PREIT's 2010 credit facility. Additional proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes. The transactions are expected to close during the fourth quarter of 2010 or the first quarter of …

CHICAGO — Chicago-based Urban Retail Properties (URP) has been awarded the management of five regional shopping centers totaling more than 3.5 million square feet of space. The first center is Mount Berry Square Mall in Rome, Ga.; the second property is Bradley Square Mall in Cleveland, Tenn.; and the third mall is Shenango Valley Mall in Hermitage, Pa. Sears and JCPenney anchor all three centers. Additional anchors include Belk at Mount Berry Square and Bradley Square, Kmart at Bradley Square and Macy's at Shenango Valley Mall. “URP hit the ground running by securing nine major anchor renewals at the three centers within the first month that it took over,” said Paul Motta, president of leasing for URP, in a statement. The other two properties, which are owned by Midwest Mall Properties, include The Citadel in Colorado Springs, Colo., and Northwest Arkansas Mall in Fayetteville, Ark. Anchors at The Citadel include Dillard's, JCPenney, Burlington Coat Factory and Sportsman's Warehouse. Anchors at Northwest Arkansas Mall include Dillard's, JCPenney and Sears. Earlier this year, URP was also awarded the management contracts for Tri-County Mall in Cincinnati and Village Mall in Danville, Ill., which together total approximately 2 million square feet. — Coleman Wood

ANDERSON, S.C. — First Quality Tissue, a New York-based maker of paper towel and bath tissue products, has purchase a 1.09 million-square-foot manufacturing facility in Anderson. The 572-acre property is located along Masters Boulevard near Anderson Regional Airport. The company plans to invest up to $1 billion in the new production facility and create 1,000 new jobs for the area by 2020. Todd Younghans of the Greenville office of Coppedge & Tison represented the seller, Shaw Industries, in the transaction. The purchase price was not disclosed.

CARMEL CHURCH, VA. — San Francisco-based McKesson Corp. is planning to break ground on a $50 million distribution center in Carmel Church. The 340,000-square-foot property is expected to bring 150 jobs to the area. Further details about the project, such as the construction timeline, have not been announced. Caroline County has committed to $380,000 in infrastructure improvements, and the Commonwealth of Virginia is contributing grants and workforce training. The Virginia Economic Development Partnership and the Fredericksburg Regional Alliance also worked to secure the McKesson project. “It is because of our strong business climate that a FORTUNE 500 company like McKesson has decided to establish its second Virginia operation in Caroline County,” Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell said in a statement. “This distribution center will enhance [McKesson's] total supply chain efficiency, utilizing Virginia's interstate network and cost-friendly business structure.”

Citibank has sold a $3.5 billion commercial real estate loan portfolio to JPMorgan Chase. The deal includes 3,800 primarily multifamily loans taken out against properties in California, Illinois and New York. The loans will be added to the Chase Commercial Banking $36 billion portfolio, of which 80 percent are multifamily loans. “We are excited about the opportunity to provide additional credit for multifamily properties in our core markets and broaden our relationship with these new clients,” Chase Commercial Banking CEO Todd Maclin said in a statement. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but it only included performing loans on strong-credit properties. The assets were all owned by Citi Holdings, and the move represents Citibank's strategy of reducing Citi Holdings' portfolio, which is now less than 25 percent of Citibank's balance sheet.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — A consortium of five lenders that includes Capmark Financial Group has taken over the troubled Xanadu project from its ownership group. The lenders' goal is to restart construction of the approximately $2 billion retail and entertainment project, which has sat idle since early 2009. The lender group, which, according to published reports, also includes Credit Suisse and an affiliate of Fortress Investment Group, is in talks with several entertainment and retail operators to complete the project and take over its management. Published reports indicate that Related Cos., which has a history of assisting with troubled construction projects, is one of the companies involved in talks. The lender group's stipulations include accelerating completion of the project and launching a rebranding campaign that will include refinishing the project's widely criticized blue-and-white checkerboard exterior. Several months ago, the previous ownership group, which includes Colony Capital, Dune Capital Management and Kan Am, entered into a forbearance agreement with the lender group that would transfer control of the project if satisfactory construction progress was not made. “The transfer of control of this complex to the lender group is consistent with Governor Christie and Commision Chair Jon Hanson's commitment to realizing the …