Sterling Bay Taps Kohl as COO

CHICAGO—The Sterling Bay Companies, a Chicago-based commercial real estate development company, has appointed George Kohl as its chief operating officer. Andy Gloor, managing principal says Kohl will assume his responsibilities in late November and oversee all aspects of company operations, including property management and leasing, legal, construction services, engineering and accounting.

“Over the last several years, as Sterling Bay has built an increasingly significant portfolio and supporting operations, we recognized the need to further elevate our management platform by adding someone with a proven track record for guiding and directing operations,” Gloor says. “With George's years of experience building and growing organizations, he is the best candidate for us and a tremendous addition to Sterling Bay.”

The company plays a key role in the ongoing transformation of the city's Near West Side, which now attracts a great deal of interest from investors and tenants. Last year, the firm bought the Fulton Market Cold Storage at 1000 W. Fulton and began converting the 550,000-square-foot structure, renamed 1KFulton, into modern office space. They will complete those renovations sometime next year and have leased more than 380,000-square-feet of space to Google, among others.

Kohl is a 25-year industry veteran who has held leadership positions with Equity Office, Trammell Crow Company and most recently CBRE. At CBRE, Kohl oversaw the company's Asset Services line of business for the North Central Region.

Prior to CBRE's merger with Trammell in late 2006, Kohl was responsible for directing Trammell Crow's work in Chicago and the Midwest. He was managing director of the firm's Midwest trade area and directed all office and industrial brokerage, property management and project management operations in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Minnesota.

Furthermore, Kohl had a 5-year stint as regional vice president of leasing at Chicago-based Equity Office Properties Trust. He handled Equity's Midwest portfolio which consisted of over 18-million-square-feet of class A properties in roughly 40 buildings in Chicago, Cleveland, Indianapolis, Columbus, Minneapolis and St. Louis.

“I have been fortunate in my career to work with some very dynamic organizations to grow their presence and enhance their operational platforms in Chicago and the Midwest,” Kohl says. “The ability to join Sterling Bay, one of the most active real estate companies in Chicago today, is a very exciting opportunity.”