Purchase significantly strengthens Avison Young’s business-line coverage
throughout Northeast U.S.

TORONTO, Oct. 3, 2012 /PRNewswire/ – Mark E. Rose, Chair and CEO of Avison Young, Canada’s largest independently-owned commercial real estate services
company, announced today its acquisition of The Walsh Company, LLC, a leading multi-service advisory organization specializing in project
management services throughout New York, New Jersey, Boston and
Washington, DC.

The acquisition further expands Avison Young’s market and business-line
coverage across the Northeast U.S., particularly in the Tri-State
market, where The Walsh Company is a recognized leader in its field.
The change in ownership will add 53 employees to Avison Young’s
operations. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

Effective immediately, Edward S. Walsh (founder and President of The Walsh Company) and Thomas J. Walsh (Managing Principal of The Walsh Company) join Avison Young as
Principals. They each bring more than 25 years of industry experience
to their roles and will be responsible for leading the growth and
development of Avison Young’s project management services platform in
the Tri-State market and throughout the Northeast.

The Walsh Company’s senior leadership comprises some of the most
accomplished professionals in their respective disciplines. Key
executives joining Avison Young include: Brian Tobiasz, Senior Vice-President of Operations; Christopher Richter, Senior Vice-President of Development; John Mercurio, Vice-President of Construction; Tracey Kasper, Vice-President of Project Management; and Lisa Addeo, Vice-President of Finance. Kevin Daly, who heads The Walsh Company’s Boston office, will also continue in his
role at Avison Young.

“We have established a track record of success by expanding our
footprint in key markets through the strategic acquisition of
well-entrenched, dominant firms such as The Walsh Company,” comments
Rose. “This partnership immediately establishes Avison Young as a
leader in project management services, and is a strong catalyst for the
continued growth of our market coverage.”

Adds Rose: “The Walsh Company has forged a tremendous reputation in the
industry, having managed some of the most high-profile construction and
development projects in the New York Metropolitan Area. We are
extremely pleased that this high-caliber company has chosen to build
its future at Avison Young, and we look forward to the significant
contributions the team will make in further enhancing our relationships
and reach.”

Founded in 2003, The Walsh Company provides a full range of development,
site engineering, project management and construction management
services to owners, investors, developers and tenants of office,
retail, flex, hospitality and residential real estate. The firm’s
expertise includes: site evaluation, technical and operational lease
consulting, design review, value engineering and pre-construction
services, construction administration, furniture-procurement services
and relocation coordination.

“Project management is a key component of our growth model, further
enabling our organization to provide the comprehensive solutions our
clients need to effectively position themselves in today’s highly
competitive and complex market,” states Earl Webb, Avison Young’s President, U.S. Operations. “Few firms have the deep
industry relationships, expertise and credibility that The Walsh
Company has established, and we are excited to capitalize on this
partnership to further build our market share in the Tri-State region,
as well as in the Boston and Washington, DC markets.”

Today’s announcement comes on the heels of Avison Young opening three
offices in South Florida earlier this week, and the firm’s first new
office in New Jersey and third office in Los Angeles last month. The
Walsh Company’s current office at 1120 Headquarters Plaza in
Morristown, NJ will become Avison Young’s New Jersey headquarters.

Notes Arthur J. Mirante, II, Avison Young Principal and Tri-State President: “Ed, Tom and their
team have demonstrated a commitment to excellence in client service
that is highly compatible to Avison Young’s business approach. There
exists significant opportunity, particularly in the New York City
market, to build upon the foundation that they have created to expand
both existing and new client relationships. With this partnership, we
now have a highly-experienced team on the ground to manage and execute
all aspects of our clients’ project management needs, from site
selection through tenant move-in.”

The Walsh Company has completed, or is currently managing, some of the
region’s most notable projects, including: BASF’s 325,000-square-foot
(sf) North American headquarters in Florham Park, NJ; Panasonic
Corporation of North America’s new U.S. headquarters in Newark, NJ;
Wyndham Worldwide’s new 250,000-sf world headquarters in Parsippany,
NJ; the renovation of the historic AMES Hotel in Boston; capital
improvements to the John Hancock Tower in Boston; and a new restaurant
and night club on behalf of EMM Group in New York City.

“This acquisition reflects the strong emphasis that Avison Young places
on partnering with companies that employ a client-centric business
approach in order to deliver the highest-quality service,” states Greg Kraut, Avison Young Principal and Managing Director of the company’s New York
City office. “The Walsh Company is the leading project management firm
in New Jersey, and one of the most accomplished services firms of its
kind in the region, and the company’s decision to join our organization
speaks to the culture of excellence Avison Young has established.”

Over the past three and a half years, Avison Young has grown from 11 to
37 offices in 31 markets and from 300 to more than 1,000 real estate
professionals across Canada and the U.S.

“I saw this as an exciting opportunity to join Avison Young as a
Principal, and to play an integral role in building an organization
that values the project management services platform as a core facet of
the firm’s corporate strategy,” states Edward Walsh. “As Avison Young
continues its aggressive growth, this partnership will provide us with
additional avenues to expand our client base, while supporting the
company’s mission to deliver fully integrated solutions across all of
its business lines.”

Adds Thomas Walsh: “We are pleased to be joining a firm that has built a
high-quality reputation, and are confident that our existing clients
will benefit from access to Avison Young’s extensive platform of
best-in-class resources and intellectual capital, as well as benefit
from our enhanced position as a single-source solution for a full range
of project management and advisory services.”

Biographies

Edward S. Walsh
Edward Walsh most recently served as Managing Principal and President of
The Walsh Company, a multi-service advisory organization that he
founded in 2003 and grew into one of the leading client representation
and project management services firms in the industry. His
responsibilities encompassed overall management of the firm’s
activities, including business development, client management and
assemblage of a more than 50-person team in five offices throughout the
Northeast.

Before founding The Walsh Company, Walsh worked for more than 10 years
as a Senior Vice-President at Gale & Wentworth, a diversified real
estate investment and services firm. He began his career with Boswell
Engineering and also previously held positions with Bomar Builders.

Walsh earned a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from
Villanova University and is a registered professional engineer in New
Jersey. He is actively involved in helping to raise funds for several
non-profit organizations in Morris and Somerset counties in New Jersey,
and has been recognized for his philanthropic efforts on behalf of the
American Cancer Society, Somerset Hills Learning Institute, Interfaith
Food Pantry of Morristown and Family Services of Morris County. He was
appointed to New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s environmental
protection transition subcommittee in 2009 and is currently Chairman of
the Board for the School Development Authority. Walsh is also a board
member of the U.S. Green Building Council.

Thomas J. Walsh
Before joining Avison Young, Thomas Walsh was a Managing Principal at
The Walsh Company, and was responsible for overseeing all of the firm’s
activities, including project management, development and construction.
He has more than 35 years of industry experience and has constructed
and developed more than 35 msf of properties throughout his career,
including such significant projects as One Lincoln Street in Boston;
The Center of Morris County in Parsippany, NJ; and Park Avenue of
Morris County in Florham Park, NJ.

Prior to joining The Walsh Company, Walsh served as a Principal at
Normandy Real Estate Partners where his responsibilities included
managing development and construction activities throughout the
Northeast. Previously, he was a Co-founder and President of The Gale
Construction Company, where he managed the design and construction of
the firm’s development projects as well as created and oversaw the
construction division, which provided general contracting and
construction management services to third-party clients, including many
Fortune 500 companies.

Walsh received his Bachelor of Engineering degree from Stevens Institute
of Technology and is a registered professional engineer in New Jersey.
Walsh has served on the Board of Trustees for PG Chambers School for
the past eight years, the Board of Trustees for Delbarton School for
the past six years, and the Board of the Patriots Path Council for the
Boy Scouts of America for more than 15 years.

In February, Avison Young was named a winner of Canada’s 50 Best Managed Companies program for 2011, sponsored by Deloitte, CIBC, National Post and Queen’s School of Business.

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 1,000 real estate professionals in 37
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.

For further information/comment/photos:

New York Media Relations:
• Christa Segalini, Vice-President, Beckerman PR: (201) 465-8021

• Elliot Baum, Principal and Vice-President of Marketing, New York, Avison Young: (212) 729-7465

Avison Young Media Relations:
• Sherry Quan, National Director of Communications & Media Relations, Avison Young:
(604) 647-5098; cell: (604) 726-0959

• Mark Rose, Chair and CEO, Avison Young: (416) 673-4028

• Earl Webb, President, U.S. Operations, Avison Young: (312) 957-7610

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

Follow Avison Young on Twitter:
For industry news, press releases and market reports: www.twitter.com/avisonyoung
For Avison Young listings and deals: www.twitter.com/AYListingsDeals
Follow Avison Young Bloggers: http://blog.avisonyoung.com

Editors/Reporters: please click on links to view and download photos of
Edward S. Walsh and Thomas J. Walsh:
http://www.avisonyoung.com/sites/default/files/content-files/Media_Room/Temp/AY_EdWalsh.jpg
http://www.avisonyoung.com/sites/default/files/content-files/Media_Room/Temp/AY_TomWalsh.jpg

SOURCE Avison Young (Canada) Inc.