Brookfield Sells 49% Interest In 245 Park Avenue To NYSTRS.

Business Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 4, 2003

Brookfield Properties Corporation (BPO: NYSE, TSX) today announced that it has agreed to sell a 49% interest in 245 Park Avenue to New York State Teachers' Retirement System (NYSTRS) as advised by ING Clarion based on a property valuation of $894 million. The total sale price of the transaction will be approximately $438 million, comprised of $195 million in cash and the assumption of $243 million of property-level debt. Upon closing later this month, Brookfield will retain the management and leasing of the property.

"This sale of a half interest in 245 Park Avenue is a continuation of our strategy to create value for shareholders by proactively managing our assets to enhance value, and then establishing partnerships with high-quality institutional partners who can participate in the cash flow along with us," commented Ric Clark, President & CEO of Brookfield Properties Corporation.

In 2001, 245 Park Avenue received the New York Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA/NY) award for "Renovated Building of the Year" following a substantial repositioning program initiated in 1997. As part of the program, Brookfield redesigned the major entrances and interior features of the building, upgraded building systems, and signed major leases including JP Morgan Chase, Rabobank and Major League Baseball.

"We are pleased to have made this investment on behalf of our client," noted Charles Grossman, a managing director at ING Clarion and NYSTRS' portfolio manager. "245 Park Avenue will be an important addition to NYSTRS' real estate portfolio."

Adjacent to Grand Central Station, 245 Park Avenue is a 45-floor office tower located on a full square block in the heart of Midtown Manhattan. The 1965 building was the first in a series of modern corporate headquarters that transformed Park Avenue into one of the most distinguished corporate corridors in the world.

NYSTRS was advised on the transaction by ING Clarion, a leading U.S. real estate investment manager. Founded in 1982, ING Clarion and its affiliates manage $12.5 billion of real estate assets in the private equity, public equity and public debt sectors. ING Clarion is headquartered in New York, with 600 employees in major markets throughout the United States. The firm is the U.S. affiliate of ING Real Estate, one of the largest real estate companies in the world with total assets under management of $44 billion globally.

Brookfield Properties Corporation, with a stock market value of $9 billion in assets, owns, develops and manages premier North American office properties. The Brookfield portfolio comprises 50 commercial properties and development sites totaling 46 million square feet, including landmark properties such as the World Financial Center in New York City and BCE Place in Toronto. Brookfield is inter-listed on the New York and Toronto Stock Exchanges under the symbol BPO. For more information, visit www.brookfieldproperties.com.