Prestigious Award Announced at ULI Fall Meeting in Chicago

For more information, please contact Cynthia McSherry, executive director, ULI Chicago, at 773-549-4972.

CHICAGO (November 7, 2013) — Penny Pritzker, 38th Secretary of Commerce and founder, former chair, and former chief executive officer of PSP Capital Partners and its affiliate, Pritzker Realty Group, has been named the 2013 Lifetime Achievement Award recipient by the Urban Land Institute’s Chicago District Council (ULI Chicago). Ms. Pritzker is a civic and business leader with more than 25 years of experience in the real estate, hospitality, senior living, and financial services industries. With deep ties to the City of Chicago and ULI, the District Council is pleased to be honoring her extraordinary achievements.

“There is no one in Chicago more deserving of this award. Over her 30-year career Penny has distinguished herself in real estate by successfully building companies, developing projects and investing in a broad segment of property types and markets. Penny’s national service is even more ‘icing on the cake’ and another example of her commitment to improving the world we live in,” said Stephen R. Quazzo, chief executive officer of Pearlmark Real Estate Partners, LLC, and member of the jury.

Ms. Pritzker was sworn in as the 38th Secretary of Commerce by Vice President Joe Biden on June 26, 2013. She was appointed to the President’s Council for Jobs and Competitiveness and previously served on the President’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board. She has also served on the boards of Hyatt Hotels Corporation, Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company, Marmon Group and LaSalle Bank Corporation.

Much of Ms. Pritzker’s civic work focuses on public education. She is past chair of the Chicago Public Education Fund, the first venture philanthropy to raise private equity to invest in public schools, and a former member of the Chicago Board of Education. In 2012, she helped launch Skills for Chicagoland’s Future, the first city model of Skills for America’s Future, preparing workers for 21st century jobs.

“My association with ULI, both nationally and here in Chicago, has been rewarding and invigorating. I am pleased to be honored by such an esteemed group of thinkers, doers and builders” said Ms. Pritzker during the Gala event.

The Lifetime Achievement Award, now in its nineteenth year, was established to recognize leaders in Chicago’s real estate community whose lifetime contributions to real estate – and to civic, charitable and philanthropic endeavors – exemplify the spirit and mission of ULI.

Past recipients have included Marshall Bennett, Marshall Bennett Enterprises; the late Bernie Weissbourd, Metropolitan Structures; the late Charles H. Shaw, The Shaw Company; the late Richard J. Brown, Cambridge Homes; Lester Crown, Material Service Corporation; the late William A. Alter, The Alter Group; Edward R. James, Edward R. James Partners, LLC; Kenneth J. James, Kenneth James Builders, LLC; Matthew Bucksbaum, General Growth Properties, Inc.; Richard A. Stein, Mesirow Stein Real Estate, Inc.; Stuart L. Scott, Jones Lang LaSalle; Douglas Crocker II, former Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees and CEO of Equity Residential; Robert A. Wislow, Chairman and CEO, U.S. Equities Realty; Norman R. Bobins, Chairman Emeritus, LaSalle Bank Corporation; Richard A. Hanson, Principal and Founder, Mesa Development, LLC; James R. Loewenberg, Co-chief Executive Officer, Magellan Development Group; John S. Gates, Jr., Chairman and CEO, PortaeCo, LLC; John A. Buck, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, The John Buck Company; and, Eugene Golub, Founder and Chairman, Golub & Company LLC.

The criterion for the award is a lifetime of professional, personal and civic commitments to the real estate profession and to the community at large. Nominations are solicited from the ULI membership and a jury of industry peers is convened to identify the recipient.

Ms. Pritzker received the award on November 6 at the Lifetime/Trustee Gala Dinner during the ULI’s annual Fall Meeting in Chicago. The meeting, which is the largest of the institute’s events and one of the industry’s premier gatherings, drew more than 6,000 ULI members and guests to Chicago this week, including globally renowned land use and real estate experts representing all land use disciplines.

About ULI Chicago
ULI Chicago, a District Council of the Urban Land Institute, has more than 1,100 members in the Chicago land area who come together to find solutions and build consensus around land use and development challenges. ULI Chicago offers technical assistance to local communities and provides resources and policy direction on infrastructure and other initiatives. Professional development and networking events are hosted on a monthly basis and include programming for young professionals in the industry. For more information, visit Chicago.uli.org.

About the Urban Land Institute
The Urban Land Institute (uli.org) is a nonprofit education and research institute supported by its members. Its mission is to provide leadership in the responsible use of land and in creating and sustaining thriving communities worldwide. Established in 1936, the Institute has over 30,000 members representing all aspects of land use and development disciplines.