In its first deal in Charlotte, Arden Group, through its fund Arden Real Estate Partners II, acquired BB&T Center at 200 South College St. in Uptown for $148.5M. The property includes the 567K SF office tower, along with the adjacent 1,520-stall parking garden.

The seller was an affiliate of CIM Urban REIT, based in Los Angeles. CIM acquired the property in 2007 for about $117M.

The office tower has two distinct floor plate sizes: 20K SF and 60K SF, which can accommodate full floor and multi-tenant layouts. The building is about 80% occupied, so there is room for growth. Tenants include BB&T Corp., AIG, TekSystems and AeroTek.

According to Philadelphia-based Arden, it will invest about $10M to upgrade the property, including refurbishments to common areas, building systems and amenities.

“BB&T Center fits within our investment thesis of targeting markets that have robust white-collar job growth, limited new supply, a highly educated workforce, population growth with a concentration of millennial workforce talent, and a relatively affordable cost of living," Arden Group CEO Craig Spencer said.

HFF facilitated the deal, and Starwood Property Trust acted as the mortgage lender. The buyer has tapped Trinity Partners to lease and manage the property.