Draper and Kramer, Incorporated reported that its chief financial officer, James Hayes, has been appointed by Illinois Governor JB Pritzker to serve on the Teachers’ Retirement System Board of Trustees. Following confirmation by the state Senate, Hayes will join the 15-member body that provides fiduciary oversight and strategic direction for one of the country’s largest public pension systems, which holds more than $85 billion in assets and investments.
Syska Hennessy Group elevated longtime team member Clint Moreno to principal, based in the firm’s Chicago office. Moreno brings 28 years of experience in designing and managing telecommunications and electrical systems, with a focus on technology infrastructure for corporate headquarters and critical facilities. His critical-facility work includes multiple local data centers and assignments for a multinational software client, underscoring ongoing demand for specialized engineering support in digital and mission-critical environments.
JLL has added Patrick Miller as its new global president for the technology sector. In his role, Miller is responsible for strategic account management and the delivery of customized real estate management solutions that help technology companies worldwide respond to shifting business and workplace requirements using data-driven insights. He now leads a team of more than 8,300 professionals providing integrated facilities management and workplace solutions across the sector.
Cushman & Wakefield expanded its Chicago presence by bringing on Peter Adamo, Adam Lawler and Madeline Leland to its office leasing and capital markets teams. Adamo and Lawler join as Executive Managing Directors, while Leland will serve as Transaction Manager. The firm stated that the additions bolster its capacity to support investors and owners throughout Chicago’s suburban office market, with particular emphasis on lease-up strategy, office capital markets and investment sales. All three professionals move to Cushman & Wakefield from CBRE.
The 25 E. Washington Street office building received the American Institute of Architects’ 2026 People’s Choice Award in the retail and hospitality category. The recognition follows the completion in 2025 of a $20 million renovation that featured the creation of The Atrium Club on the seventh floor. Totaling 400,000 square feet, the Daniel Burnham-designed property, formerly the Marshall Field & Co. Men’s Store Annex, has been managed by Aspire Properties for three decades. The renovation team also included Geniant Eastlake Studio, Redmond Construction and Forefront Structural Engineers.
Wanxiang America Real Estate Group, owner of Prudential Plaza, announced plans to install a life-size bronze sculpture honoring renowned film critics Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert in Pru Plaza. The six-foot-five work, titled “Siskel & Ebert: Two Thumbs Up,” will pay tribute to the pair’s widely recognized movie rating system. Illinois sculptor, painter and educator Preston Jackson, Professor Emeritus of Sculpture at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, has been commissioned to create the statue.
