James Yost, PLA, ASLA is one of hundreds of skilled GAI professionals who help clients create better communities, transportation infrastructure, energy generation and delivery, and more from our office locations throughout the United States. Today we will find out a little about what makes James tick—the background, motivation, and methods that he brings to the table every day for GAI and GAI’s clients.
Q: Can you tell us a little bit about your area of specialization and what drew you to it?
I specialize in landscape architecture, primarily through urban design, master planning, and site development. I have been practicing landscape architecture since 2011 but took a couple of years off to work as the director of a local main street organization focused on urban redevelopment.
I have always been drawn to architecture and planned to pursue it as a career, however, I chose to go to West Virginia University (WVU) to study civil engineering upon graduation from high school. While in the civil engineering program I happened upon the WVU landscape architecture department and became inspired with how they designed urban areas and environments. I quickly set up a meeting with the department chair and enrolled in the program the following semester. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire program and the people I met along the way. I have been blessed to have the opportunity to work on a diverse range of projects within my state and region since I graduated, and I continue to learn and grow as a landscape architect every day.
Q: What sorts of projects do you typically contribute to at GAI and what role do you play?
Since I started working at GAI, I have had the opportunity to contribute to a wide range of projects. While I find my strength lies in urban design and planning, I have worked on large-scale park projects, regional transit authority projects focused on Transit-Oriented Development and station design, renewable energy sites, and several site development projects for schools, universities, and civic areas. As a landscape architect in West Virginia, I find that you must be well rounded and able to perform on multiple project types. This allows me to work with my team to develop unique spaces for a range of clients in our region.
Q: What do you like most about your job?
Being able to translate a project for a client is one of the most rewarding aspects of my career. Typically, our clients have an idea or concept in their head that they may need help expressing. Taking their feedback along with that of the public and transforming it into a visual rendering and then into a built project is very gratifying to me.
The combination of the CSG practice and GAI’s larger engineering talent pool offers substantial benefit for our clients’ project goals, and I can think of no better company to be a part of.
Q: Why do you feel GAI is a good place to put your skills to work?
I am lucky enough to be a part of GAI’s Community Solutions Group (CSG), a design practice backed by the power of a national engineering firm. This arrangement allows me to collaborate with extremely talented coworkers in a range of disciplines, combining their knowledge with my own to realize successful, sustainable projects. The combination of the CSG practice and GAI’s larger engineering talent pool offers substantial benefit for our clients’ project goals, and I can think of no better company to be a part of.
Contact James Yost, 681.245.6482, for more information about GAI’s Community Solutions Group—message GAI and start the conversation about how our multidiscipline professionals can meet your unique project needs.
James Yost, PLA, ASLA specializes in landscape architecture and urban planning. As a Landscape Architect Manager in GAI’s Charleston, WV, office he coordinates a range of landscape architecture, planning, and solar energy projects and marketing activities throughout GAI’s northeast operating area. As part of GAI’s Community Solutions Group, James continues to contribute to award-winning designs throughout the region, applying more than a decade of experience on a diverse scope of projects for both the public and private sectors.
