Board of Directors

BLAKE HUTCHESON
Chair

Blake is President and Chief Executive Officer of Oxford Properties Group, the investment and management arm of OMERS global real estate portfolio. He is responsible for achieving Oxford's goals and executing its long-term business strategy. He will also play a vital role in establishing and maintaining Oxford's relationships with key partners in markets around the world.

Blake Hutcheson is one of Canada's leading real estate executives and entrepreneurs. Most recently he was the Head of Global Real Estate with Mount Kellett Capital Management, a New York-based private equity firm with offices in key locations around the globe. Previously, he was President of the Canadian, Latin American, and Mexican operations for CB Richard Ellis, the world's largest real estate services company. He has also served on several other external boards and committees including Director of Algoma Central Corporation; Director of RealNet Canada; Director of Microbonds, Inc.; Chair of the Mayor of Toronto's Fiscal Advisory Committee (2008); Past President of the University Club of Toronto; Advisor to Schulich School of Business at York University.

Blake is a graduate of the University of Western Ontario, the London School of Economics, England and Columbia University, New York.

COUNCILLOR DOUG FORD
Vice Chair

Doug Ford was elected Councillor for Ward 2, Etobicoke North, where he lives with his wife Karla and four beautiful daughters. A life-long resident of Etobicoke, Doug is the son of late MPP Doug Ford Sr., and brother of Mayor Rob Ford.

Doug has over 25 years of international and domestic business experience, most recently as President of Deco Labels & Tags which employs 250 people in Toronto, Chicago and New Jersey. This experience includes overseeing Deco’s tremendous growth and international expansion, first with the opening of a U.S. division in Chicago in 1999, and later with the acquisition of a New Jersey based company in 2008.

Doug participates on Boards or in leadership positions of numerous community-based organizations representing sport, seniors, and not-for-profits. Chief among those was the Toronto West Rotary Club where Doug served for over twenty years in roles such as Treasurer, Vice President and President. For his work, Doug was awarded the Paul Harris Fellow Award - the highest award you can receive in Rotary for Outstanding service to your community.

DAVID BARRY
Director

David is Executive Vice President and Portfolio Manager at Bentall LP. Bentall provides comprehensive, fully-integrated real estate services to over 100 institutional investors and property owners across Canada and in select markets in the United States. Assets currently under administration comprise approximately 87 million square feet with office, retail, industrial and residential properties valued at more than $17 billion. In addition, Bentall has recently concluded a significant investment and strategic alliance with Kennedy Associates Real Estate Investment Advisors, the largest independent U.S. real estate advisory firm with approximately US$8 billion in assets under management.

David has over 20 years experience in the real estate investment industry in Canada. Previously, he was Vice President, Real Estate Investment with RT Realty Advisors, where for almost 10 years he played a leading role in business development, acquisition, leasing, development and asset management. Prior to this, he was with The Prudential Insurance Company of America.

David Barry has a Bachelor of Commerce from McGill University and an MBA from the University of Western Ontario. He has also been actively involved for many years as a coach in both boys and girls youth hockey programs in the City of Toronto.

BRUCE BOWES
Director

Bruce Bowes is the Chief Corporate Officer for the City of Toronto. He has held this position since April 2005 and is responsible for Toronto's Facilities & Real Estate Division and the Fleet Services Division.

Bruce has been in municipal government since 1990, initially as Director of Public Works in the town of Aurora. From 1993 to 2001 he was the Director of Facilities and Property Management for the City of Mississauga. He then accepted the position of Executive Director of Facilities & Real Estate for the City of Toronto. In 2005 Bruce was appointed the Chief Corporate Officer for the City. Prior to 1990 Bruce was a senior officer in the Canadian Forces Military Engineers.

Bruce Bowes is a professional engineer with an undergraduate degree in Civil Engineering and a post graduate degree in Urban and Regional Planning, both from Queen's University in Kingston.

PAUL FINKBEINER
Director

Paul Finkbeiner is President of GWL Realty Advisors Inc., one of Canada's largest real estate investment advisors. Paul is responsible for the overall management and growth of GWL Realty Advisors' $12.7 billion real estate portfolio, including strategic direction, business development, asset and property management and specialized real estate advisory services to pension funds and institutional clients.

With over 20 years experience in the real estate industry, Paul has worked for Trizec Corporation, Brookfield Properties and Trilea Shopping Centres. Paul is a member of the National Association of Real Estate Investment Managers (NAREIM), the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (NAIOP) and the Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario, and is a Past Director of the REALpac. Paul is also a member of the Young Presidents' Organization and a Director on the Habitat for Humanity Toronto Advisory Board.

Paul Finkbeiner holds a Bachelors and a Masters degree in Civil Engineering from Queen's University and a Master of Business Administration degree from McGill University.

STUART LAZIER
Director

Stuart Lazier is the principal shareholder of AXIA Corporation, a commercial real estate investment company with holdings in opportunity and income oriented real estate investment funds.

Stuart was previously co-founder and Partner with KingSett Capital Inc. In addition to assisting with the strategic leadership of the business he was also responsible for the operations, leasing and value optimization of KingSett's portfolio. Since 2002, KingSett raised three Growth Funds, raising $1.27 billion of equity from 11 institutional and private investors which was invested in over 60 investments totalling over $3 billion. He was also President of O&Y Enterprise, where he managed the growth of the real estate management services business to over 100 million square feet of commercial space. Prior to this, he was the National Managing Partner of Enterprise Property Group.

Stuart Lazier was awarded the Community Service Award in 2003 and has served as board member and Chair of Covenant House, as Chair of the real estate committee for the Toronto United Way and currently as Vice Chair of the Board of Governors at Upper Canada College. He holds an MBA from the Ivey Business School at the University of Western Ontario.

UCAL POWELL
Director

Ucal Powell is the Executive Secretary-Treasurer of the Central Ontario Regional Council of Carpenters, Drywall & Allied Workers Union. It is an affiliation of ten Local Unions representing approximately 15,000 working men and women with a staff of fifty-five. He also serves as the Chairman of the Employee Bargaining Agency, which holds bargaining rights for the Industrial-Commercial-Institutional (ICI) and Heavy Construction sectors throughout Ontario. Ucal is a trustee of the Carpenters' Local 27 Health & Welfare and Pension Fund as well as the Local 27 Resilient Floor Health & Welfare and Pension Fund.

Ucal's community involvement has included Mens Sana, the Good Shepherd Ministries, the Vitanova Foundation, the Hospital for Sick Children, and the Children's Aid Foundation. Ucal was also one of the founding members of the Bursary Program of 31 Division's Community Police Liaison Committee designed to assist youth interested in obtaining marketable skills through education and apprenticeship.

Ucal Powell is a carpenter by trade and a former member of the board of the City of Toronto Economic Development Corporation (TEDCO). He is currently a member of the Board of Directors for the Humber River Regional Hospital Foundation.

BRIGITTE SHIM
Director

Brigitte Shim is both an architect, principal in the firm Shim-Sutcliffe Architects and an Associate Professor at the John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape & Design at the University of Toronto. Brigitte Shim and Howard Sutcliffe's design practice Shim-Sutcliffe Architects reflects their shared interest and passion for the integration of architecture, landscape and furniture. The firm has been honored with eight Governor General's Medals and Awards for Architecture from the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada along with design recognition from the American Institute of Architects, American and Canadian Wood Council's awards program.

Brigitte is currently serving on Waterfront Toronto's Design Review Panel along with the University of Toronto's Design Review Committee and on the editorial board of Praxis - Journal of Building and Writing. She was an invited visiting chair at Yale University's School of Architecture, an invited visiting professor at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland, and at Harvard University's Graduate School of Design. She has also served as a board member of the National Capital Commission Architectural Advisory Board as well as Mooreland's Community Services.

Brigitte Shim was born in Kingston, Jamaica and trained at the University of Waterloo in Environmental Studies and Architecture.

KEN SILVER
Director

Ken Silver is Senior Vice President, Real Estate & Strategy with Canadian Tire Corporation Limited, and President of Canadian Tire Real Estate Limited, a subsidiary company. Ken is accountable for all real estate development, construction, disposition and property management activities for Canadian Tire and its five business units. He is also responsible for the Corporation's strategy development, mergers and acquisitions and sustainability initiatives.

Ken has spent more than 20 years in the development and retail industries in Canada and the United States, with experience in retail, residential, industrial, and commercial development.

Ken Silver graduated with a BA (Hons) from Queen's University and received his MBA from McGill University. Since 2004, Ken has served as a member of the Board of Directors of Eva's Initiatives, is a Committee Member of the Partnership to Advance Youth Employment and former volunteer with the Toronto Children's Breakfast Club.

COUNCILLOR MICHAEL THOMPSON
Director

First elected in 2003, Councillor Michael Thompson represents the prominent Ward 37, Scarborough Centre. He is a strong advocate for the City and his Ward for community-based program for business development, public safety and education.

As a result of his tireless work in each area, Michael is credited for many outstanding accomplishments. Michael’s strong advocacy for public safety resulted in a city-wide Community Safety Plan, a police task force on guns and gangs and positive programs for young offenders. As Chair of the Scarborough Community Council, he led the campaign to create the first ever TTC transit strategy for Scarborough to expand and enhance public transit for residents. He also spearheaded the Wexford Heights Business Improvement Area and the Taste of Lawrence Avenue East Festival, which has attracted tens of thousands of people celebrating cultural diversity.

A leader who is recognized for his ability to “get things done”, he has been invited to sit on boards that shape the City: Chair, Economic Development and Culture Committee, Vice-chair, Toronto Police Services Board, Toronto Transit Commission, Chair, Youth Assisting Youth, Toronto Zoo and Vice President, Municipal Section of the Canadian National Exhibition.

Prior to entering politics, Michael worked in the financial services industry and later founded and ran a successful business services company. Michael holds a BA degree in Economics from Concordia University.

MIKE WILLIAMS
Director

Mike Williams is General Manager of Economic Development, Culture and Tourism Division of the City of Toronto. Mike came to the City in 2009 from the Toronto Region Research Alliance (TRRA), where he served as Senior Vice President, Investment Attraction.

Mike previously worked as Assistant Regional Director at Statistics Canada, a Principal at Woods Gordon, and President of Compusearch. He was also Senior Vice President International for R.L. Polk, a multinational information and marketing company, where he was based out of the UK and responsible for Europe, South America and Australasia. He has conducted numerous economic development consulting assignments for municipal and provincial governments and agencies, and has served on the boards of the Toronto Board of Trade and Dixon Hall. Mike has also been involved with the creation of a variety of cluster building strategies and action plans, including greentech, digital media, advanced manufacturing, bio life sciences and ICT.

Mike Williams has a B.A.(Hons) in Economics and Geography, an M.A. in Urban Geography from Queen's University, and is a Certified Management Consultant.

Board Committees
Board Meetings
Corporate Documents