Landlord-representation specialist Eric Myers joins Avison Young in Chicago

Industry leader becomes Principal, will lead Midwest agency-leasing efforts

CHICAGO, IL, Jan. 24, 2013 /CNW/ - Michael McKiernan, Avison Young Principal and Managing Director of the company's Chicago office, announced today that leading commercial real estate broker Eric Myers has joined Avison Young's brokerage operations in Chicago.

Effective immediately, Myers joins Avison Young as a Principal and will lead the firm's landlord/agency-leasing efforts in Chicago and the Midwest.

Myers brings 21 years of commercial real estate industry experience to Avison Young. During his career, he has closed more than 3 million square feet (msf) of office leases in the Chicago metropolitan area. He was most recently an office leasing broker specializing in landlord representation with Tishman Speyer in Chicago.

"It is a pleasure to bring a professional of Eric Myers' stature and experience to Avison Young. He is highly regarded in the industry and has negotiated a substantial number of major leases on behalf of landlords during his career," comments McKiernan.

He continues: "Eric's success in Chicago and his ability to provide creative leasing services to office landlords further strengthens our platform in the Midwest. Avison Young has had great success representing landlords in other markets and we plan on building on that success as our firm continues its aggressive expansion programs in the U.S."

Myers spent seven years at Tishman Speyer, leasing more than 2 msf of office space. He was involved in the negotiations with CME for its 400,000-sf lease in the CME building as well as other  prestigious firms such as Dykema Gossett (80,500 sf), Wells Fargo (300,000 sf) and BP (240,000 sf) at the newly named CME Center. The BP transaction earned Myers and his team the Chicago Commercial Real Estate Landlord Office Broker of the Year award in 2009. In 2011, he and his colleagues received the NAIOP Award for Excellence for Office Broker Transaction of the Year for completing the new lease with Wells Fargo.

In 2012, Myers spent considerable time presenting and strategizing the development of a 1.2-msf office tower in the West Loop with Tishman Speyer and architects Krueck & Sexton. Prior to joining Tishman Speyer, Myers held landlord office broker positions with ING Clarion (2002-2004), The John Buck Company (1996-2001) and Orix Real Estate Equities (1995-1996). He began his career as a market research analyst and suburban landlord office broker with Bennett & Kahnweiler (now Colliers International.)

Myers is a member of the Chicago Office Leasing Brokers Association (COLBA), past president of the Chicago Real Estate Organization (CREO) and has been a finalist for the industry's Landlord Office Broker of the Year award numerous times. He is also on the board of the American Brain Tumor Association and chairs the research committee for the organization. Myers holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Indiana University - Bloomington.

"Avison Young has undergone significant growth over the past three years, and I am excited about the opportunity to contribute to the company's landlord office representation efforts in Chicago and the Midwest. I am impressed by the company's performance and strategic direction, and look forward to playing an important role in Avison Young's ongoing growth and success," says Myers. "I am also grateful for the opportunity to share my landlord-representation knowledge and insights with professionals not only in Chicago, but across the company in Canada and the U.S."

Over the past four years, Avison Young has grown from 11 to 43 offices and from 300 to more than 1,100 real estate professionals across Canada and the U.S.

Founded in 1978, Avison Young is Canada's largest independently-owned commercial real estate services company. Headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Avison Young is also the largest Canadian-owned, principal-managed commercial real estate brokerage firm in North America. Comprising more than 1,100 real estate professionals in 43 offices across Canada and the U.S., the full-service commercial real estate company provides value-added, client-centric investment sales, leasing, advisory, management, financing and mortgage placement services to owners and occupiers of office, retail, industrial and multi-residential properties.

• Editors/Reporters: please click on link to view and download photo of Eric Myers
http://www.avisonyoung.com/sites/default/files/content-files/Media_Room/Temp/Eric_Myers.jpg

For further information/comment/photos:

• Sherry Quan, Nat'l Director of Communications & Media Relations, Avison Young: [phone]
• Michael McKiernan, Principal and Managing Director, Chicago, Avison Young: [phone]
• Eric Myers, Principal, Avison Young: [phone]

www.avisonyoung.com

Avison Young is a winner of Canada's 50 Best Managed Companies program for 2011, sponsored by Deloitte, CIBC, National Post and Queen's School of Business

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SOURCE: Avison Young Commercial Real Estate (BC)

Media Relations:              
Sherry Quan                  
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