John Dolan
Managing Director, New England market, Avison Young
Age: 44
Industry experience: 16 years
John Dolan takes over leadership of brokerage Avison Young’s New England region at a critical moment in the region’s commercial real estate industry. Development is down and major investment sales activity has been sluggish in the wake of interest rate increases and slowing economic growth. Boston’s central business district has struggled to reduce office and retail vacancies, prompting Mayor Michelle Wu to offer incentives for office-to-housing conversions. Brokerages such as Avison Young are diversifying their business lines to find growth opportunities. In his new role since April, Dolan oversees Toronto-based Avison Young’s New England territory including 59 employees based out of its office in Boston. Dolan held roles in brokerage at Colliers’ and McCall & Almy before joining Avison Young in 2021 as a partner. Outside the commercial real estate industry, Dolan is known for the high-profile side gig he’s held since 2006 as public address announcer for the Boston Bruins.
Q: There’s been a noticeable slowdown in development activity in Boston and throughout the region this year. Is that primarily caused by new regulations on things like affordability and energy efficiency, or broader macroeconomic factors?
A: It’s a combination of all of the above, including cost of construction. You’ve got government regulations that are sort of seeping in and on the new development side, you’re creating a little bit of a stew there that needs to be sorted out. It would be great to get some of our [political] leadership together with people on the front lines who understand what’s going on. It would be helpful to see not only the mayor, but the City Council in Boston and the folks in Cambridge and Somerville, sit down and understand how to foster strong relationships.
Q: What’s your impression of the significance of Mayor Wu’s proposal to give tax abatements to developers for office to housing conversions?
A: Anything helps, but the age and the type of product that we have in Boston makes it a little bit more difficult to get a critical mass together to be able to convert. It’s great that we’re trying to be proactive and look at other issues that may be plaguing the Financial District to attract a more diverse set of businesses and retail to complement the housing component, and to bring more life to the Financial District. If you’re going to order people back to the office, you need to offer people something. What can we do to enhance the current offerings? Employees are saying, “I’ve got more here in the suburbs around my house than if I was going back into Boston.” Boston Properties, Oxford Property Group and Rockpoint have all been doing a great job looking at what the tenant experience is.
Q: How long do you expect the lack of investment sales in office properties to continue?
A: Buildings are hitting the market, but they’re just not selling. It’s a matter of what the future looks like for commercial real estate. Some people say there may be a Category 5 hurricane coming for the investment sales market, and it starts with the basics. Are we getting people back to the office? Are we leasing space? Maybe rents did get too high and a correction is good. It resets the values in some ways. But you always want to keep getting [prices] up. Hopefully it turns the corner in the next two to three quarters, combined with a return-to-work effort this fall, which I think might be coming. Three or four days a week [of office work] will help the fundamentals.
Q: Where are the growth opportunities in brokerage?
A: Property management specifically is something we’re looking at to expand our offerings. A mid-level player like Avison Young has a lot to offer in that realm. Boston is a target market for expansion there. We have five people in Boston that focus exclusively on life science [project management], and 21 overall. We’ve been growing that around the country. For a brokerage like ourselves, it’s adding veteran teams that might complement the client experience, but also to bring in new brokers who are looking to be opportunistic. The tech community might not be back in the office full-time, but it’s still a burgeoning sector, and life sciences are not going to be as quiet as they are right now. Everything runs in a cycle, and you’re going to see things pick up in six to nine months in that regard.
Q: What’s Avison Young’s local recruitment strategy?
A: We are looking to be fanatical about the client experience and we’re mostly tenant representation, with a few select landlord listings. We are looking for brokers who want an opportunity to be in an entrepreneurial shop, but also to add complementary veteran teams to our existing group. We have opportunities both on the downtown and suburban fronts to grow our presence and also to add complementary professionals to our capital markets group and expand our offerings there.
Q: Beyond your Bruins announcing duties, what does your schedule look like outside the office?
A: My schedule is limited to 10 Bruins games, plus the Beanpot Tournament and Hockey East championships. I’m technically the back-up for the Boston Celtics, but [PA announcer] Eddie Palladino has missed about one game in the last 20 years. I’ve a two-year-old in the house and we live in Andrew Square and our office is at 200 State St., so it’s convenient to get to the games, but I’m not spending as much time at arenas. I’d rather hang out with friends and my family.
Dolan’s Five Favorite Weekday Lunch Spots:
- O’Hara’s Food & Spirits, Newton Highlands
- The Fours, Quincy Center
- Warehouse Bar & Grill, Financial District
- Dave’s Fresh Pasta, Davis Square
- Previte’s Marketplace, Weymouth
