Local billionaire and philanthropist Gary Michelson received the Gordon and Llura Gund Leadership Award at Research!America’s annual Advocacy Awards last week.
Michelson is an orthopedic spinal surgeon and holds nearly 1,000 medical patents. He is also the founder and co-chair of Michelson Philanthropies.
Michelson has been one of the leading forces behind the California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy, one of two centers planned for a UCLA research park at the former Westside Pavilion mall. Last year he announced that he committed $100 million in personal funds toward the efforts as part of a $120 million donation to the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine.
He and his wife Alya are part of the Giving Pledge, a campaign that encourages ultra wealthy individuals to give the majority of their wealth to philanthropic causes.
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CBRE Group Inc. has added a number of prominent brokers to its roster locally.
Last week Stephen Somer joined the firm’s Capital Markets teams as a vice chair. Brooke Silver also joined the team as a senior vice president. Both were previously with Eastdil Secured. Somer had served as the firm’s managing director since 2003.
“Stephen is highly respected and admired throughout the industry, and we are thrilled to welcome him to the team,” Andy Ratner, executive managing director of CBRE, West Los Angeles, said in a statement.
Somer will be based in West L.A. while Silver will be based in downtown.
They aren’t the only brokers to recently join CBRE. Earlier this month Nicole Mihalka, a prominent real estate broker previously with Jones Lang LaSalle Inc., was named a senior vice president at CBRE’s downtown office. Mihalka specializes in creative office, entertainment and studio spaces
“We are delighted to welcome Nicole to the CBRE team. Her extensive experience with the entertainment industry, along with her leadership in civic engagement and government growth initiatives will be a tremendous asset to our organization,” Jessica Lall, managing director at CBRE’s downtown office said.
