CHICAGO - Commercial real estate broker Eric Myers has joined Canadian firm Avison Young in their Chicago office as a principal, the company announced.

Michael McKiernan, Principal and Managing Director of Avison Young's Chicago office, said Myers will lead the firm's landlord and agency-leasing efforts in Chicago and the Midwest. Myers has 21 years of commercial real estate industry experience; he was most recently an office leasing broker specializing in landlord representation with Tishman Speyer in Chicago. “Eric's success in Chicago and his ability to provide creative leasing services to office landlords further strengthens our platform in the Midwest," McKiernan says in a press release. "Avison Young has had great success representing landlords in other markets and we plan on building on that success as our firm continues its aggressive expansion programs in the U.S.” Myers spent seven years at Tishman Speyer, leasing more than 2 million square feet of office space. He and his team won the Chicago Commercial Real Estate Landlord Office Broker of the Year award in 2009 and in 2011 they received the NAIOP Award for Excellence for Office Broker Transaction of the Year. Prior to joining Tishman Speyer, Myers held positions with ING Clarion, The John Buck Co., and Orix Real Estate Equities. He began his career with Bennett & Kahnweiler, which is now Colliers International. Myers is a member of the Chicago Office Leasing Brokers Association and past president of the Chicago Real Estate Organization. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Indiana University-Bloomington. “Avison Young has undergone significant growth over the past three years, and I am excited about the opportunity to contribute to the company's landlord office representation efforts in Chicago and the Midwest," Myers says in the release. "I am impressed by the company's performance and strategic direction, and look forward to playing an important role in Avison Young's ongoing growth and success.” Founded in 1978, Avison Young is Canada's largest independently owned commercial real estate services company. It is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, and employs more than 1,100 real estate professionals in 43 offices across Canada and the U.S.