• Eric Haley will retire as head of private-equity buyouts at the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, according to a Bloomberg report. Haley has been with OMERS for about 14 years. He previously served as head of head of North American private equity for the Toronto-based pension fund manager.

• Sharm Powell has been appointed to Cadillac Fairview’s board of directors. Powell’s career experience spans commercial real estate, banking, brokerage and investments. She has expertise in property acquisitions and dispositions, development and redevelopment, include mixed-use and site intensification projects, along with structuring long-term joint-ventures, public and private market financing, and corporate mergers and acquisitions.

• ExP Realty has appointed Nadia Habib as managing director of the firm’s Canadian business. She has been with the company since 2022, after moving from Century 21, where she last served as a broker and manager.

• Realstar has appointed Randy Hoffman as its new CEO. Hoffman moves to Realstar from Oxford Properties, where he most recently served as the head of its U.S. business. He spent about two decades at Oxford, starting as an investment analyst and advancing to increasingly senior executive positions. Realstar invest in multi-residential, hospitality and alternative assets.

• Avison Young Principal Jeff Flemington will cycle more than 4,000 kilometres across the largely unpaved Great Divide Mountain Bike Route (GDMBR) in support of the Canadian Cancer Society. The five-week solo journey, dubbed Project 55 in honour of Flemington’s age, will take place from May 24 to July 3, covering 4,340 kilometres between New Mexico and Alberta—90% of which is unpaved. The effort pays tribute to Flemington’s colleagues, Sarah Campbell and Kiana Kasaei, and their personal battles with cancer. His goal is to raise $55,000 to support research into brain cancer and breast cancer, the respective diagnoses that have affected Kasaei and Campbell. The fundraising project has secured a 50% matching program through Toronto’s Princess Margaret Cancer Centre Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute. People wishing to contribute funds can donate through the Project 55 website.

• Luke Simpson has assumed the role of CEO at his family-owned firm, Cana Construction. He has succeeded his father John, who remains with the Calgary-based company as chairman. Canada was founded by John’s father Jack Simpson, the benefactor of a gymnasium on the University of Calgary campus bearing his name. Luke will also retain his role as Cana’s president, a position that he has held for the past six years.

• Jay Tarrabain has joined MLT Aikins as a real estate lawyer in Regina. He advises clients on commercial and residential property transactions, leasing and both conventional and Islamic financing. Braden Nehring, whose practice includes construction disputes, has has also joined the firm in Regina.

• The Retail Council of Canada will present François Roberge, president and CEO of la Vie en Rose, with a lifetime achievement award at this year’s Excellence in Retailing awards banquet. “Roberge is being recognized not only for his outstanding business leadership, but also for his lasting contributions to elevating Quebec’s fashion industry and strengthening Canada’s presence on the global retail stage,” said the RCC. Under his leadership, la Vie en Rose entered has expanded internationally, entering the Saudi Arabian market in 2004. The company also expanded into the U.S. in 2024 and acquired Bikini Village in 2015. La Vie en Rose has about 400 stores in 20 countries and more than 5,000 employees. Roberge is also credited with playing a leading role in establishing Quebec’s status as a global fashion. He also established the Roses of Hope foundation, which since its creation in 2002 has contributed more than $4 million to breast cancer research and women’s wellness initiatives. He also raised $1 million for nature conservation in 2024 and plans to match that total this year.

• SolarBank has appointed Martone Advisors and its principal, Jonathan Martone as a company advisor. He will advise SolarBank on its previously disclosed planned expansion into the data-centre market. He has more than 25 years of experience in the data-centre and telecommunications industries.

• Savills has expanded its Montreal office with a new investment sales team, enhancing its advisory services in the region. Jean-Pierre Gagnon and Robert Metcalfe join as executive vice-presidents, alongside Noémie Lefebvre as senior director and Olivier Dufault-Gagnon as associate. The team will leverage Savills’ global platform to grow its capital markets presence, advising clients on portfolio strategy and managing investment sales transactions. Gagnon and Metcalfe were previously principals in the capital markets group at Avison Young, while Lefebvre was a director and chartered appraiser at Altus Group.

• The Alberta Real Estate Foundation has appointed Josh Traptow as executive-director. Prior to joining the foundation, he served as CEO of the Calgary Foundation for almost a decade.

• Starlight Investments will serve as the presenting sponsor for the Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation’s Journey to Conquer Cancer for the fourth consecutive year. The event, scheduled for Sunday, June 15 at Varsity Stadium in Toronto, invites participants to walk or run distances of 1 km, 3 km, or 5 km to raise funds for cancer research at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. Starlight has been a dedicated partner of this initiative for over a decade, contributing more than $250,000 through employee participation, fundraising, and sponsorships.

• Siskinds LLP has appointed Matthew Wilson as a partner in its London, Ont., office. Since joining the law firm in 2018, Wilson has led the real estate department, focusing on residential, commercial, and complex property transactions, land development, and mortgage financing. Recognized as a certified specialist in real estate law by the Law Society of Ontario, he also serves as an elected bencher of the law society and volunteers with organizations such as Western University and London Health Sciences Centre. Siskinds’ London office has also named Vivian Iron as a partner. Her diverse practice includes real estate.

• The federal government is accepting proposals for the Canadian Apprenticeship Strategy’s Investments in the Training Equipment $20-million funding stream. Through funded projects, Ottawa will support the purchase of modern, up-to-date training equipment and materials that meet industry standards, and will help improve the quality of training for apprenticeships in Red Seal trades. “Eligible organizations include unions representing Red Seal trades workers, organizations managing their own training funds, and training providers that provide technical training to apprentices as part of a recognized apprenticeship program or a Red Seal trade,” says the government. There is no end date for requests for proposals. They will be considered on an ongoing basis. Organizations can submit their applications electronically via the Grants and Contributions Online Services (GCOS) portal.

• Unceded: Voices of the Land, a groundbreaking Indigenous-led contemporary architecture exhibition, will be showcased at Edmonton City Centre until June 21. Originally created for the 2018 Venice Architecture Biennale, Unceded is the first exhibition of its kind to be presented on the world stage, celebrating Indigenous architecture through the perspectives of 18 Indigenous architects and designers from across North America. More details are available at Unceded.org.

Join Canada’s leading CRE owners, investors, developers, brokers, financiers, and more at Connect Canada on May 28 at Malaparte in Toronto. Register now to catch forecasts from Canadian CRE leaders on market challenges and opportunities, insights into international investing with evolving market dynamics, the outlook for multifamily housing, and much more. www.ConnectCanada2025.com