Avison Young acquires Calgary-based property management firm Peregrin Inc.

Purchase further expands Avison Young's business-line coverage
throughout Alberta; Kevin Ogle becomes Principal, 12 members join

TORONTO, Feb. 12, 2015 /CNW/ - Mark E. Rose, Chair and CEO of Avison Young, the world's fastest-growing commercial real estate services firm, announced today that it has acquired Calgary-based real estate management company Peregrin Inc.

The purchase further expands Avison Young's business-line coverage in Calgary, Edmonton and throughout Western Canada, and adds approximately 1 million square feet of property under management to Avison Young's global portfolio. As a result of the acquisition, Avison Young adds 12 employees in Calgary.

Established in 1995, Peregrin represents high net worth individuals; foreign and Canadian family trusts; and institutional, corporate, pension, endowment and sovereign fund clients, managing their commercial real estate assets in Western Canada. The firm's services include property management, asset management and project management, investment sales, leasing, and mortgage-financing services.

Effective immediately, Peregrin founder, President and CEO Kevin Ogle becomes a Principal of Avison Young. He will direct Avison Young's real estate management business units in Calgary and Edmonton and be responsible for expanding their related business lines throughout Alberta. He will also collaborate with colleagues in other Avison Young offices to grow the company's asset and property management business lines throughout Western Canada and across the country.

Existing Peregrin staff will carry out similar roles as they transition to Avison Young. New staff will be added to accommodate the company's expanded portfolio under management.

"We're excited to welcome the Peregrin team to Avison Young as we expand our asset and property management services in Alberta and across Canada," comments Rose. "For 20 years, Peregrin has provided a full range of investment services to Canadian commercial real estate investors, owners and developers. The firm has developed an outstanding reputation for reliable and consistent advice and strategies in asset acquisitions and management of revenue-producing properties. Kevin and his team are the kind of exceptional people whom Avison Young requires to continue to provide the highest level of service to our clients."

Rose continues: "Furthermore, Peregrin's long-term clients have displayed deep loyalty, which speaks to the quality of Peregrin's people and work. This company has grown from the grassroots, and complements our existing service lines."

The acquisition brings Avison Young's total square feet of retail, industrial and office properties under management in Canada, the U.S. and Europe to more than 70 msf.

"We really admire and respect the way that Peregrin does business," states Todd Throndson, Avison Young Principal and Managing Director of the firm's Calgary office. "We spent more than a year looking for the right cultural partner to grow our asset services and property management business in Alberta, and Kevin was the top choice."

"Actually, this acquisition culminates discussions that we've had with Kevin over the past decade about joining forces," Throndson adds. "Avison Young's and Peregrin's senior leaders have had business and personal relationships over the years that will make this acquisition seamless and co-operative in every aspect. We have already demonstrated our ability to work together. Since October 2014, Peregrin has been providing tremendous operations, accounting, administration, project management and leasing administration services for Avison Young in Calgary."

Also joining Avison Young from Peregrin are: Charles Northup, Jordan Haber, Joe Nosella, Janelle Rowat, Terry Elliott, Veruska Predan, Adeana Bohnet, Bentley Heintz, Clarissa D'Castro, Gilles Gilbert and Chadi Ellahib.

"I have enjoyed a professional relationship with the Principals and founders of Avison Young for decades in Western and Central Canada," says Ogle. "By joining Avison Young, my team and I have achieved one of our corporate goals of offering clients an international market footprint and differentiated culture. This transaction provides us with a profound opportunity to contribute to Avison Young's broad platform of asset services while continuing the Peregrin culture of creating wealth for our clients in real estate, treating our tenants as guests in our clients' properties, and providing a career-growth vehicle that allows our staff to participate in the success of the company."

Over the past six years, Avison Young has grown from 11 to 64 offices and from 300 to more than 1,700 real estate professionals in Canada, the U.S. and Europe.

Today's announcement comes on the heels of Avison Young opening a new office in Moncton, New Brunswick on February 6, 2015 and a new office in Munich, Germany on January 21, 2015.

***

Biography

Kevin Ogle

Kevin Ogle brings 35 years of commercial real estate experience to Avison Young, most recently as President and CEO of Peregrin Inc., a Calgary-based real estate management company that he founded in 1995. During his career, Ogle was also President, CEO and founder of Centrex Contracting Inc. (CCI), which specialized in project and construction management and general contracting for base building repairs, and office, retail and medical tenant improvements in commercial properties.

Prior to launching Peregrin and CCI, Ogle spent nine years as Vice-President, Western Canada of The Edgecombe Group, a wholly-owned subsidiary of North American Life Assurance Company (NALACO), one of the 10 largest firms of its kind in Canada. In this role, he co-ordinated the sourcing of commercial property mortgage-investment opportunities, and serviced mortgage portfolios for NALACO and 147 other lenders. Under Ogle's guidance, Edgecombe also acted as asset, portfolio and property manager to acquire, lease, renovate, refinance and sell commercial properties across Canada and parts of the U.S.

Ogle's commercial real estate industry experience includes real estate development, construction, leasing, mortgage underwriting and servicing, asset acquisition, disposition and portfolio management. He has also held senior management positions with national institutional real estate investment organizations. In addition, Ogle is a past board member of TTM Resources Inc. (a public company), as well as past sole director of three separate stand-alone real estate investment companies owned by The Alberta Investment Management Company (AIMco) – the Alberta pension and sovereign fund group that manages approximately $75 billion on behalf of clients. Ogle has also served as governor for Opportunity International, a global not-for-profit micro lending and insurance organization.

• Editors/Reporters
Please click on link to view and download photo of Kevin Ogle:
http://www.avisonyoung.com/sites/default/files/content-files/Media_Room/Temp/Kevin_Ogle.jpg

For further information/comment/photos:

• Sherry Quan, Principal, 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

• Todd Throndson, Principal and Managing Director, Calgary Avison Young, 403.232.4343

• Kevin Ogle, Principal, Avison Young, 403.571.4253

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SOURCE Avison Young Commercial Real Estate (BC)

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