Ms. Galbreath is the Managing Director of Galbreath & Company with real estate investments and private equity holdings in the US.

COLUMBUS (June 1, 2017) — John W. Galbreath, an internationally-recognized real estate developer and philanthropist, has been named the first recipient of the ULI Columbus Visionary Award. The newly-created award recognizes extraordinary leadership in the responsible use of land and will be awarded posthumously to Mr. Galbreath at ULI Columbus’s inaugural Awards for Excellence program on September 7.

The ULI Columbus Visionary Award has been established to honor an individual who has had a significant positive impact on Central Ohio’s built environment, demonstrated a commitment to improving the communities in which we live and work, and represented the highest standards of responsible, high-quality place making and development.

A native of Ohio, Galbreath is being recognized for his significant impact on the Central Ohio region and the many achievements throughout his lifetime that exemplify ULI’s mission of creating and sustaining thriving communities. The award will recognize his many contributions to Central Ohio’s built environment, as well as the family’s broader commitment to community building and supporting critical civic, charitable, and philanthropic endeavors.

Galbreath’s long term engagement and leadership of ULI illustrate his dedication to the ULI mission.  He was an early member of ULI, having joined the Institute in 1940. He served as a ULI trustee for 18 years and as a council member for 24 years. He was appointed as an honorary member in 1982 and helped initiate several ULI Advisory Panels.

Galbreath founded the John W. Galbreath Company in 1921as a development management company, which grew to become the 15^th largest property management services company in the United States prior to its merger with LaSalle Partners in 1997. With operations across the United States, the John W. Galbreath Company was also active in international markets such as Europe, Hong-Kong, South Africa, Singapore, and Brazil.

“John Galbreath was an extraordinary positive force in central Ohio development and beyond.  He embodied ULI’s mission and this recognition is long overdue,” says ULI Columbus chairman Yaromir Steiner

“With the establishment of the ULI Columbus Visionary Award we will recognize and celebrate leaders who foster significant and lasting improvement to their communities through their work, and certainly John Galbreath could not serve as a more fitting example of the positive long-lasting impact real estate leaders can have on communities.”

Galbreath’s award will be accepted by Lizanne Galbreath, his granddaughter and the current managing partner of Galbreath and Company.

“On behalf of my family, I’d like to thank ULI for recognizing my grandfather’s commitment to and love of the city of Columbus,” says Lizanne Galbreath.  He was a ULI member for over 40 years, perhaps one of the founding members, and he lived its mission of responsible land use wherever he worked. Whether building a literal city in Hong Kong with Mobile Oil or supporting his hometown of Columbus in partnership with its corporate citizens, my grandfather was dedicated to improving the living and working lives of people in the communities where he worked. He’d be humbled and honored by this recognition.”

Galbreath’s legacy will be honored at the inaugural ULI Columbus Awards for Excellence dinner on September 7, 2017, at the Columbus Museum of Art. ULI Columbus has emerged as a leading convener of expertise and analysis as well as a go-to source for insight on regional growth and development trends. ULI Columbus is also uniquely positioned to offer recognition and celebrate the region’s extraordinary growth in recent years, exemplified by a pipeline on transformative development projects throughout the region,

ULI Columbus seeks to advance its mission and continue serving as Central Ohio’s most credible and impactful professional organization serving the broader land use and development community. ULI Columbus will also recognize best practices in Central Ohio through our awards event with an application and jury review process of the following award types:

Excellence in Development Award – The award recognizes a transformational project that best exemplifies the development process. Winning projects represent the highest standards in the development industry—standards that ULI members deem worthy of attainment in their professional endeavors. Two projects are honored in this category—one with total project costs of less than $10 million, and one with total project costs of $10 million or more.

Community Impact Award – The award recognizes a public, private, or public/private project, building, program, or initiative that has had a measurable positive impact on a community or the Central Ohio region. Examples include a civic use or space, park, plaza, infrastructure, or other physical development, or a program or initiative that has been underway for at least one year that has resulted in positive changes to the built environment.

About the Urban Land Institute

The Urban Land Institute (www.uli.org) is a global 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 40,000 members representing all aspects of land use and development disciplines.

For more information, contact Alicia Gaston at 614/596-0983