People Moves: March 2024

Ruth Legg has joined Concert Properties as vice president, environment, social & governance. Legg has spent a decade in financial services, most recently as Americas head of supply chain sustainability and diversity at HSBC. 

Jerome Julier has been appointed executive vice president and chief financial officer for Aecon. Julier brings two decades of leadership experience in finance, strategy, and capital markets with a significant focus on industrial businesses in the construction, engineering, and transportation sectors.

Elliott Altberg has been appointed executive vice president, eastern Canada, at Beedie. He joins Beedie with almost 20 years of experience in real estate in capital markets, private equity/pension fund investments, property brokerage, and corporate mergers and acquisitions at some of the most pre-eminent real estate and investment banking firms in North America.

Jennifer Mallard has been selected as principal for Henriquez Partners Architects’ new Toronto studio. Previously a partner at Diamond Schmitt, Mallard developed extensive knowledge of the Toronto market, with over 30 years of experience leading the design and delivery of civic, residential, educational and institutional projects.

Mike Keane has been hired as a senior project manager at Roc Modular. Keane has nearly a decade of experience in the modular construction industry, successfully managing a variety of large-scale modular multi-unit housing and commercial projects.

Josh White has been chosen as the City of Vancouver’s next general manager, planning, urban design and sustainability (PDS) following an extensive recruitment process. His most recent role was director, city and regional planning and co-chief planner at the City of Calgary.

I received an incredibly warm welcome from an almost overwhelming number of people that reached out from Vancouver today. I look forward to collaborating in confronting the challenges of housing affordability and continuing to make Vancouver even more liveable and sustainable!

Josh White, general manager, planning, urban design and sustainability, City of Vancouver

Francis Roy has been appointed chair of the Canadian Construction Association’s board of directors. A 30-year veteran of the industry, Roy is president and CEO of Groupe Humaco companies.

Shirin Oshidari has joined Salus as its chief revenue officer. Oshidari has overseen sales and services for innovative construction tech companies like Primavera, Autodesk, StreetLight Data and OpenSpace. She will spearhead Salus’ expansion into the U.S. market.

Dante Gamboa has been promoted to business development representative at 505-Junk. 

Frank Carillo and Nicholas Pang have joined Stack Modular as project manager and project coordinator, respectively. 

Ricardo Brites has been promoted to director of engineering & VDC at Mercer Mass Timber after two years with the company. 

Troy MacBeth Ambromaitis is leaving Bucci Developments after 11 years. Ambromaitis stated that his time at Bucci was filled with invaluable experiences, growth opportunities, and cherished memories spanning over a decade.

Ryan Pfeiffer is now a partner at Rain City Industrial where he will assume a pivotal role in leading its refrigeration division forward into a new era of innovation and excellence.

Thomas Grell has joined Graham as its executive vice president, services. Grell has nearly three decades of progressive leadership experience and a proven track record of success across diverse industries. He will lead Graham’s Services division with a focus on exceptional safety results, repeat business with key clients, and sustained growth.

Chris Colbeck, president of Townline, has announced his retirement. Colbeck launched his real estate career in 1990. His successor will be Daryl Simpson, who is known for his work with the Urban Development Institute, the Hecht Foundation and the Canuck Place Children’s Hospice.

Mission Group has restructured its senior leadership team. Randy Shier, co-founder and president is now chief product officer. Luke Turri will shift from executive vice president to president. Steve Abel will move from vice president of finance to chief financial officer. 

Lindsay Brand has been appointed chief investment officer of Concert Properties. Brand will lead Concert’s national team responsible for the income-producing property portfolio, including acquisitions, dispositions, asset and fund management, leasing and property management. She will also oversee Concert Income Properties, an open-ended, limited partnership Canadian fund.

Shane McKernan is now director of preconstruction at Axiom Builders. McKernan began his career as a Red Seal carpenter and went on to high level roles at Keltic Development and Chard Development before joining Axiom.

David Woolley is starting a new position as director of business development, western Canada, at T-RAIL Products. Woolley has more than six years of engineering design experience in the specialized railroad trackwork industry for both light rail and class one railroad agencies.

Rene Ruano has joined EllisDon as a project manager. Previously, he spent eight years at Magil Construction.

Ross Daigle, former owner of Dovie Mechanical, has joined Pitt Meadows Plumbing & Mechanical as vice president of operations. Matthew Robinson, one of the company’s partners, will now assume the role of senior vice president. James Zelinski, C.Mgr will take on the position of vice president of administration.

Paul Kelly has been promoted to vice president of operations, pipeline and Davide Fulcini has been promoted to vice president of operations, infrastructure at Surerus Murphy Joint Venture.  

Both Paul and Davide have held increasingly senior positions within Surerus Murphy and are recognized within the industry for their expertise in early contractor engagement, engineering, design, and construction, as well as their exceptional people leadership and “can do” attitudes.

Surerus Murphy

Dave Filipchuk, PCL president and CEO, has been recognized by the Canadian Construction Association as this year’s Pinnacle Leader. recognizes leaders who apply the highest standards and principles of the construction industry and business community. 

I accept this recognition humbly, knowing the credit is shared with an incredibly talented leadership team that I’m part of, and that our 5,000 plus contingent of dedicated construction professionals have made this possible.

Dave Filipchuk, PCL president and CEO

Martin Jepil has been named chief information officer at Avison Young where he will be tasked with overseeing the firm’s information technology platform and overall architecture. Jepil first joined the firm in April 2021 as Principal, Global Vice President Enterprise Architecture, responsible for delivering world-class technology solutions and products to facilitate client success.

John M. Beck, founder and chairman of Aecon, will receive the title Honorary Doctor of Laws from Assumption University. The Doctor of Laws is presented upon recommendation of Assumption University’s Senate and conferred by the Chancellor, Bishop Ronald Fabbro.

Orlene King is celebrating 15 years at Graham where she works as its senior director of communications.

Some might say that’s a long time to spend with one organization. Hasn’t always been easy but when your values align and you work with talented people, loyalty comes easy.

Orlene King, senior director, communications, Graham Group

Philippe Michalik has been promoted to director of finance and analytics, and Janet McCausland has been hired as head of corporate and external affairs at Kindred Works.

Zachary McLeod has been promoted to operations manager at Graham. He has spent 13 years at the company, originally starting as a project coordinator.

Rabih Zahnan is Wesgroup Properties‘ new senior vice president and managing director, construction. He brings over 20 years of experience in construction, commercial real estate development and operations throughout North America and overseas. He most recently held the role of president and chief operating officer at Sorensen Gross Construction Company

Angela Sahi has been appointed as Morguard’s new president and chief operating officer. In this new role, Sahi will oversee the company’s operations and drive strategic initiatives aimed at enhancing Morguard’s market position and delivering value to its stakeholders. 

I am deeply honoured and excited to take on the role of President and COO at Morguard. I am grateful for the trust and support of the Board of Directors, and I am committed to leading Morguard toward continued growth and success. Together with our talented team, I look forward to capitalizing on new opportunities and delivering reliable performance to our investors, tenants, and partners.

Angela Sahi, Morguard president and COO