INVESTORS

CHICAGO, March 30, 2000 – First Industrial Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: FR) announced today that its Board of Directors has appointed W. Ed Tyler as a new member of the Board. Mr. Tyler is the president and CEO of Moore Corporation Limited, a position he has held since April 1998. Prior to that Mr. Tyler was the chief technology officer and executive vice president for R. R. Donnelley & Sons Company. Mr. Tyler holds directorships with Cherry Electronics Corporation, the American Red Cross (Mid-America) and Moore Corporation Limited. He was educated at the Indiana Institute of Technology, holds two science and engineering degrees, received an MBA from Indiana University, and was awarded a post masters degree from Baruch University – City University of New York.

“We are thrilled to have Ed as a new member of our Board of Directors,” First Industrial President and CEO Mike Brennan said. “Ed brings to First Industrial a wealth of technical and operational expertise, and the broad scope of his background will increase our ability to serve Corporate America's industrial real estate needs.”

First Industrial Realty Trust, Inc., the nation's largest provider of diversified industrial real estate, owns, operates and manages 75 million square feet of industrial facilities. First Industrial is committed to creating shareholder value through its INDL operating strategy, using its pure Industrial focus and its National platform to serve the Diverse facility needs of customers, while offering the expertise of full-service, Local management.