In this image released by St. John Properties, employees of the Maryland real estate firm react after finding out the company is surprising them with $10 million in bonuses at a holiday party, Saturday, Dec. 7, 2019, in Baltimore. (Wendy Hickok Photography via AP)

In this image released by St. John Properties, employees of the Maryland real estate firm react after finding out the company is surprising them with $10 million in bonuses at a holiday party, Saturday, Dec. 7, 2019, in Baltimore. (Wendy Hickok Photography via AP)

BALTIMORE (AP) — A commercial real estate developer is handing out a total of $10 million in bonuses to its 198 employees.

WTOP reported Monday that Baltimore-based St. John Properties announced the bonuses at the company’s holiday party.

Edward St. John, the founder and chairman of the company, said the amount of money that each employee gets is based on tenure. The average bonus was $50,000, but some employees will get upward of $250,000.

The company has employees throughout Maryland and northern Virginia. The bonuses celebrate the company’s achievement of developing 20 million square feet of office space, retail and warehouses. That real estate is spread out over eight states.

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Edward St. John said that he is “thankful for every one of our employees for their hard work and dedication. I couldn’t think of a better way to show it.”

The company was founded in 1971. It has retail and warehouse space in Maryland, Virginia, Colorado, Louisiana, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Utah and Wisconsin.