John Allen, AMLI co-founder and fixture in the Chicago CRE community, died Sunday after a brave battle with cancer. He was 76.
John and current AMLI CEO Greg Mutz co-founded AMLI Realty Co (its predecessor) in 1980 and John served as president for more than 20 years. He was smart as a whip, unusually unflappable, and had an uncanny ability to distill complicated deals into simple, written agreements, Greg told us this afternoon. Calling his partner of 25 years his polar opposite, Greg said, "I was always starting the fire and he was always putting the fire out." John was well liked and well respected for his ability to dial down arguments and diffuse contentious situations. Both partners completed each other's sentences and never shared a harsh word. "If there's life after death, John is the embodiment of it in living through AMLI," Greg said. "AMLI is a living, breathing entity that reflects so much of the strength and character that John brought to the table. John's DNA is everywhere throughout AMLI."
