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CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Parkway Properties (NYSE: PKY) has closed on the acquisition of the 972,000-square-foot Hearst Tower, an office building located in Charlotte’s CBD. Additionally, the company has received a $200 million equity investment by TPG, a leading global private investment firm. “We are pleased to have completed these important steps in the evolution of Parkway as we continue to position ourselves for long-term growth,” says Jim Heistand, president and CEO of Orlando, Florida-based Parkway. “We remain firmly committed to improving operations and cash flow, and on pursuing new acquisitions to grow the company.” The 46-story office tower is 94 percent leased, and tenants include Bank of America, which signed a new lease for 322,000 square feet in the building. The property is expected to generate cash net operating income of approximately $17.5 million during the first year of the company’s ownership period. “Parkway’s high-quality office portfolio, which is concentrated in attractive Sunbelt markets, provides a unique investment opportunity,” says Avi Banyasz, partner at TPG. “Hearst Tower is a great example of the type of investments Parkway’s talented management team will seek to identify and secure in the future.” The acquisition was financed with the money received from TPG, as …

SAN FRANCISCO — Los Angeles-based Hudson Pacific Properties Inc. (NYSE:HPP) has completed the $90 million acquisition of 901 Market Street, a mixed-use property located at the intersection of San Francisco’s Union Square and South of Market submarkets. The 212,000-square-foot historic building consists of 149,000 square feet of office space and 63,000 square feet of ground floor and lower level retail space. The purchase price comes out to be approximately $425 per square foot. “We are very pleased to close the acquisition of the 901 Market Street property,” said Victor Coleman, chairman and CEO of Hudson Pacific. “901 Market Street is a great complement to our San Francisco portfolio and represents a tremendous opportunity to reposition a property in one of the best locations and best markets in the country.” The property, a former Hale Department Store building, is located adjacent to the Westfield San Francisco Shopping Centre and Union Square BART entrance. It is currently 62 percent leased to a diverse tenant base. The seller was CFRI/Urban 901 Market LLC. The San Francisco market is considered a marquee arena for commercial real estate activity and development. ULI and Pricewaterhouse Coopers named San Francisco the third best market in the U.S. …

LEAWOOD, KAN. — Glimcher Realty Trust (NYSE:GRT), a Columbus, Ohio-based owner, manager and acquirer of shopping centers, has completed the $67.5 million purchase of One Nineteen, an outdoor property located in Leawood, a suburb of Kansas City. The approximately 165,000-square-foot center is located adjacent to another Glimcher property, Town Center Plaza, which Glimcher purchased in December 2011. “We are pleased with the strategic acquisition of One Nineteen to complement Town Center Plaza,” said Michael Glimcher, CEO of Glimcher Realty Trust. “Together these properties represent 600,000 square feet of retail space, generating sales of more than $550 per square foot. They offer tremendous growth potential and will generate efficiencies in leasing and property management.” One Nineteen’s tenant sales average more than $900 per square foot and the center in currently 93 percent leased. The occupancy rate of Glimcher’s mall portfolio closed at 95 percent at the end of 2011. The open-air center is an attractive asset for Glimcher, which targets these outdoor centers for its portfolio. “When we consider acquisitions, redevelopments or expansions, we are very attracted to the open-air concept,” said Glimcher in a recent interview with Heartland Real Estate Business, a France Media publication. One Nineteen features upscale retailers, …

LAS VEGAS — As co-CEO of Auction.com Commercial, Eric Paulsen has his finger on the pulse of online trends in the sale of real estate properties and loan notes. In 2011, the commercial real estate division of the Irvine, California-based company arranged the sale of 1,169 notes totaling more than $4.6 billion at a recovery rate of 52 percent. The commercial division last year also auctioned off 1,087 real estate owned (REO) properties valued at $1.2 billion with an average recovery price at 103 percent of the reserve price. Prior to 2011, Paulsen served as vice president of acquisitions and dispositions for Miami-based LNR Property Corp. He has more than 20 years of experience in the commercial real estate industry. REBusinessonline caught up with Paulsen on the show floor at RECon 2012 to discuss the growing popularity of online auctions in the commercial real estate industry and some of the driving factors. REBO: What’s the profile of the online buyer for retail properties in today’s market? Paulsen: We literally have sold everything from the single tenant pad Starbucks to the 800,000-square-foot mall. It’s across the board nationally. It can be any retail product type, any location and in any condition. …

WOODSTOCK, GA. — Developers have broken ground on a new outlet mall in Woodstock, approximately 35 miles northwest of Atlanta, which seeks to draw shoppers from a three-state area. In January, Chattanooga-based CBL & Associates and Horizon Group Properties of Norton Shores, Michigan, formed a joint venture to develop the Outlet Shoppes at Atlanta. The development is scheduled to open in August 2013. The 370,000-square-foot center was originally conceived as an outdoor lifestyle center, says the site's original developer and land owner, Bill Butler, of Ridgewalk Properties Group LLC. Cousins Properties, which had previously planned to build The Avenue, an upscale retail center, pulled out of the project under the weight of market conditions after the recent economic downturn. Another factor is that open-air malls had begun to fall out of favor, says Butler. “We are extremely pleased that Horizon Group and CBL stepped forward to finally complete the long-anticipated project,” says Butler. The site is located off I-575 at the new Ridgeway Parkway exit. The developers said they expect the shopping center could attract about 4 million shoppers a year from Georgia, Tennessee and Alabama. “It is located much closer to the residents of metro Atlanta than existing outlet …

CHICAGO — John Hancock Real Estate, the U.S. unit of Manulife Real Estate (TSE: MFC), has purchased 150 North Michigan Avenue, a 41-story office tower located in the East Loop of Chicago’s CBD, for $102 million. With its diamond-shaped roofline and white exterior, the 661,482-square-foot, Class A tower is one of the most unique buildings in the Windy City. John Hancock purchased the property from SEB Investment GmbH, a German real estate fund manager. SEB purchased the office tower for approximately $113.2 million in 1999. John Hancock also owns and manages the 37-story 191 North Wacker Drive on Chicago’s West Loop and the 1 million-square-foot Schaumburg Corporate Center. “John Hancock has been looking for opportunities to grow its real estate investment portfolio, and in the last 12 months we’ve successfully acquired more than $700 million in real estate assets in several diverse markets and property types,” said Kevin Adolphe, COO of Manulife Financial Corp.’s investment division and president and CEO of Manulife Real Estate. “The purchase of 150 North Michigan Avenue supports John Hancock’s continuing strategy to invest in core real estate assets with solid long-term value, located in key markets throughout the United States. We are extremely pleased to …

CHICAGO — Roosevelt University has completed construction on the $123 million Wabash Building, a 32-story tower containing laboratories, classrooms, student life facilities and residential housing for the college. The building, which is located at 425 S. Wabash Ave. in Chicago, will open this Saturday, May 5. “The Wabash Building is special because it is a vertical campus that combines all in one structure 633 student residences, classrooms and laboratories, and student life facilities like a recreation center, meeting rooms, cafeteria and bookstore,” says Tom Karow, assistant vice president of public relations for Roosevelt University. “It is the second tallest university building in the country and the sixth tallest in the world.” The first floor of the building contains the offices of administration, financial aid and advising, as well as the bookstore. On the second floor is a 300-seat dining center, and the following four floors include offices and meeting rooms for student organizations and a fitness center. The tower includes seven conventional classrooms, three tiered classrooms and three auditorium-style classrooms, which increases Roosevelt’s classroom capacity in Chicago by 40 percent. Additionally, three floors include laboratories for physics, biology and chemistry studies. Floors 10 through 12 include the Heller College of …