DALLAS-Younan Properties Inc. has named Thom Ridnour to the newly-created position of director of leasing. In his new role, the industry veteran is responsible for leasing and marketing Younan’s 6.5-million-square-foot Dallas portfolio, which accounts for more than half of the company’s total assets.

Ridnour's appointment is one of the first steps Younan is taking to build its in-house leasing platform, according to Robert Peddicord, chief operating officer of Younan. “We are revamping our organization to capture new business as we see the market turning,” he tells GlobeSt. “As activity has picked up, we decided we needed more manpower.”

Ridnour has more than two decades of experience in negotiating, leasing and managing commercial property, acquisitions, development and oversight for both large urban and suburban properties in multiple cities. Most recently, he was a principal with TRG Realty Services in Dallas, a commercial real estate services company and subsidiary of TRG Investment Corp.