Commercial Bay Area Movers: Key Leadership Changes

JLL Capital Markets has appointed Erik Hanson to lead industrial investment sales and advisory efforts for all of Northern California. Hanson, a senior director, has 15 years of experience and closed over $10 billion in transaction volume over his career, according to a news release from JLL.

Hanson joined JLL in 2015 after nearly six years with Colliers. His client base includes institutional investors, regional operators, corporations and private capital.

Hanson is based in the San Francisco office, works alongside director Melinda Marino, and reports to office co-heads Charles Halladay and Rob Hielscher. Their team operates as part of JLL’s National Capital Markets Industrial group, which is led by Trent Agnew and John Huguenard.

Hanson’s “extensive experience and deep understanding of the Northern California industrial landscape will be invaluable in fostering cross-regional collaboration and delivering innovative solutions to our clients,” Agnew said in a statement.

Hanson said in a statement that he was looking forward to “leveraging my experience across various product types to drive growth and innovation in this critical market.”

Avison Young appoints Tom Bruister as occupier services principal, senior director

Avison Young has brought on Tom Bruister as a principal and senior director for the firm’s occupier services platform. Based in the San Francisco office, he will “spearhead the expansion of business development opportunities across North America, collaborating closely with the firm’s sales teams in the U.S. and Canada,” according to an Avison Young news release. Bruister has more than 20 years of experience in commercial real estate and most recently served as chief revenue officer at LiquidSpace, a global technology firm that connects users with flexible office space and provides software to help manage hybrid and distributed workforces. Before that, he served large enterprise clients in transaction management at JLL and WeWork.

In his new role, Bruister will partner with Keith Knox, a principal and the president of occupier services.

“Today’s occupiers seek data-driven, strategic real estate advice,” Knox said in a statement. “Tom will be pivotal in delivering this value, focusing on strengthening relationships and expanding business with current and potential clients.”

In a statement, Bruister said that it was an “ideal time” to join the firm as “we are at a pivotal moment in the real estate ecosystem, where occupiers require strategic, holistic guidance to navigate complex challenges — from shifting macroeconomic conditions to evolving workforce strategies shaped by the post-pandemic era and technological disruption.”

Retail agents Julie Taylor, Laci Jackson Ravina partner at Colliers

Colliers announced a new partnership between top retail agent Julie Taylor, an executive vice president, and Laci Jackson Ravina, who joins the firm as a vice president after most recently holding the role of first vice president of the western region at CIM Group. In that position, Ravina oversaw leasing strategy for a 3-million square foot portfolio of urban, mixed-use, neighborhood retail and high-street assets, according to a Colliers press release. She has 17 years of experience and has closed nearly 2 million square feet in transactions across major U.S. markets.

Taylor has leased over 1 million square feet of space in Union Square and downtown San Francisco over her career, representing more than $1 billion in transaction value. She has about 20 years of experience, 10 of them at Colliers, according to her Linkedin.

“Julie brings a depth of experience and relationships in San Francisco [that are] truly unmatched,” Ravina said in a statement, adding that she is “excited” to return to the brokerage side of the business after several years working for an institutional owner.

“Retail is always evolving, and so is San Francisco,” Taylor said in a statement. She felt the new collaboration would allow the team to “serve clients with a dynamic blend of proven market expertise and fresh perspective.”

“We’re not just leasing space — we’re reimagining street retail on San Francisco’s most important pedestrian corridors,” she added. “This is such an exciting time for us to bring together landlords and retailers who are collaborating to reshape downtown. The optimism is truly off the charts.”

As the city “reawakens” post-pandemic, the commercial firm is “committed to helping shape what’s next — partnering with forward-thinking owners and brands to reimagine the future of retail in our city,” Kitty Aguilera, managing director for Colliers Bay Area, said in a statement.

Marcus and Millichap institutional division expands in Palo Alto

Rob LeDoux is the new senior director for Institutional Property Advisors, a specialized division of Marcus & Millichap that serves the commercial firm’s institutional clients. Most recently a director at Walker & Dunlop, LeDoux has spent 15 years in the commercial real estate industry working with institutional investors on apartment deals throughout Northern California, according to an IPA press release. Over the course of his career, he has been involved in transacting over 15,000 units totaling more than $4 billion in sales volume.

Based in Palo Alto, LeDoux now brokers multifamily investment property transactions on behalf of institutional and major private clients in partnership with the IPA Northern California team of Philip Saglimbeni, Salvatore Saglimbeni, Stan Jones and Alex Tartaglia.

“Rob’s work ethic, transactional expertise, and versatile skill set make him a valuable addition,” Philip Saglimbeni said in a statement.

In the last decade, the Northern California IPA team has closed over 221 transactions on behalf of their clients valued at over $15 billion, according to the release.

The new hire “deepens our ability to serve investors pursuing multifamily investment opportunities throughout Northern California and furthers our continued growth and expansion of the IPA platform,” Andrew Leahy, national director of IPA’s multifamily division, said in a statement.

Greg Johnson selected as new managing director of Multistudio design firm in SF

Greg Johnson is the new managing director at Multistudio, the design firm behind Chorus, Align Real Estate’s housing and arts complex in Mid-Market, as well as Strada’s proposed residential tower at 395 Third Street and Michelle Obama Elementary School in Richmond.

Johnson has over 30 years of directorial experience from architecture firms like Perkins+Will and SOM, as well as his own practice. He has worked on everything from research campuses to civic and residential projects, according to a Multistudio press release.

The appointment comes at a “pivotal moment in our 50-year journey,” Tony Rohr, national managing principal at Multistudio, said in a statement. Johnson’s “strategic acumen, paired with being firmly rooted in the San Francisco community made him a natural fit for the role, according to the studio.

Johnson said in a statement that he is “honored to contribute to a practice that not only imagines what is next but builds it. If I were to sum up this next chapter, it’s this: strategic by design, driven by vision.”

Multistudio is an employee-owned, nationally recognized firm with offices in Lawrence, Kansas City, New Orleans, Phoenix and San Francisco’s South Park.

Jeff Hoopes joins Suffolk Construction as president of West Coast

Jeff Hoopes is the new president of the west coast for Suffolk Construction, coming over from Swinerton Construction, where he served as CEO and most recently chairman emeritus.

A native Californian, Hoopes has worked in the construction industry for over 40 years and oversaw Swinerton’s expansion throughout California, Oregon, Washington, Texas and Hawaii, according to a Suffolk press release.

The new role is part of a broader push in the West for the Boston-based construction firm, which also includes the appointment of Stephen Green as Suffolk’s general manager for Los Angeles. Green has over 30 years of experience in construction and joins Suffolk from Trubeck Construction, where he served as vice president of operations.

“There is extraordinary growth potential on the West Coast, and these important hires will contribute to the strong foundation we have built in this region,” said Suffolk Chairman and CEO John Fish in a statement.

The new execs come at a “critical moment for our organization to bolster operational excellence,” he added, and “their strong leadership, longstanding relationships, commitment to innovation, and approach to client service will strengthen our value proposition and allow us to expand our brand in California and beyond.”

Presidio Bay Ventures launches new hospitality-driven real-estate services platform

Presidio Bay Ventures has formally launched The Main Post, a standalone hospitality-driven real estate services platform, according to a press release from the developer, bringing in Rouven Moell as director of hospitality and operations. Moell was a director of operations at Tartine Bakery and director of restaurants and bars at private San Francisco social club The Battery.

When opening mixed-use projects like Springline, Sequence, Ventana and The Spear, it became evident to K. Cyrus Sanandaji, founder and managing principal of Presidio Bay, that, “legacy third-party service models fall short when trying to integrate the philosophies of hospitality and placemaking with traditional project, asset and property management.”

The Main Post platform is meant to bridge that gap and takes its name from the Main Post in the Presidio of San Francisco, according to the release, which the development firm sees as a “central, multifaceted hub, rich in culture and history,” and the inspiration to create “dynamic, engaging environments that serve diverse user needs while embracing innovation and adaptability.”

Moell will lead amenity operations, experiences and activations to enhance tenant engagement and maximize property value.

“True hospitality is about creating environments where people feel valued and inspired,” he said in a statement. “My goal at The Main Post is to blend thoughtful design with service excellence, crafting spaces that surpass people’s expectations and facilitate meaningful interactions.”