Businessman Jim Tyree released the names of his ten co-investors in the Sun-Times Media Group Friday. Besides Tyree, the CEO of Mesirow Financial Group, and liquor distributor and Chicago Blackhawks owner Rocky Wirtz, whose involvement has long been known, the group is a collection of Tyree's Mesirow colleagues and area businessmen described by the Tribune as "both controversial and colorful Chicagoans."
The additional investors, as identified in the release:
- Andrew Agostini, Principal and Owner, J.L. Woode Ltd.
- Kevin Flynn, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Emerald Ventures, Inc.
- Ed Heil, Investor and Entrepreneur
- Michael Mackey, Senior Managing Director, Insurance Services, Mesirow Financial
- William Parrillo and Robert Parrillo, Private Investors
- Richard Price, President and Chief Operating Officer, Mesirow Financial
- Ed Ross, Principal and Owner, J.L. Woode Ltd.
- W. Rockwell "Rocky" Wirtz, President, Wirtz Corporation
- Bruce Young, Vice Chairman, Mesirow Financial
Each investor paid up to $5 million, according to Crain's columnist Shia Kapos.
"Our goal is to build a high-quality, high-integrity business with the best local coverage of news, sports and entertainment," the release said. "We are committed to investing the necessary capital to transform the company to accomplish that goal.[...] We are confident that, going forward, we can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our employees and work together to build a world-class media business."