Avison Young Expands in the Twin Cities

MINNEAPOLIS—Avison Young has started a large number of new offices throughout the US and Europe in the last six years, but after the sites open the company keeps working to build the capacity of each. The Toronto-based firm opened its Minneapolis office this March, for example, and has just brought on a three-person team from Cushman & Wakefield/Northmarq that specializes in corporate services.

Effective immediately, Doug Fulton becomes a principal of Avison Young while Rob Youngquist and Stephanie Severson will serve as a senior vice president and vice president, respectively, in the Minneapolis office. They will continue to work as a team to assist in expanding the firm's enterprise solutions business nationally.

“In each city, what we do is put down a flag, and then we grow around it,” Mark E. Rose, chair and chief executive officer of Avison Young, tells GlobeSt.com. “We continue to find the right people to do this.”

Over the past six years, Avison Young has grown from 11 to 69 offices and from 300 to more than 2,000 real estate professionals across Canada, the US and Europe.

“We don't want revenue producers,” Rose adds, “we want people who will solve customers' problems.”

Fulton brings 24 years of commercial real estate experience to Avison Young, most recently as executive director of occupier advisory services with C&W/Northmarq. He has dedicated much of his career to providing advisory services to office and industrial space users. Before moving to C&W/Northmarq in 2007 through its acquisition of Northstar Partners, where he had formerly served as partner and senior vice president, he was a senior vice president with Grubb & Ellis, where he led a corporate advisory team.

Youngquist most recently served C&W/Northmarq as a senior director of tenant advisory services. He began his brokerage career there in 2005 and concentrated on office and healthcare properties before moving into corporate services. During his career, he has been involved in transactions totaling about three million square feet and valued in excess of $200 million.

Severson was a director of tenant advisory services with C&W/NorthMarq in Minneapolis. She began her career in 2001 as a research intern with Grubb & Ellis' Twin Cities office. After taking a permanent position within Northstar Partners' office services group, she was named the firm's emerging broker of the year in 2006. During her career, Severson has specialized in tenant representation as well as transaction management for clients such as Thrivent Financial, CenturyLink and Great Clips.

“Their deep market knowledge and experience in delivering practical real estate solutions will be invaluable here in the Twin Cities,” says Mark Evenson, Avison Young principal and managing director of the company's Minneapolis office. "Not only are they successful and accomplished professionals, but they are three of the finest individuals I know. I have known Doug for most of his career and am thrilled to have him, Rob and Stephanie become part of our growth in the Twin Cities.”