While a senior architect and urban designer at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill in Chicago, he worked on the King Abdul Azziz University project and New Town housing for faculty, staff and students in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. As project designer/urban designer for this university project, he produced the publication “Urban Design Middle East,” a primer for development projects that relate to the cultural and traditional values within the Middle Eastern context.

Yas was a project designer on the J.G. Shedd Oceanarium, Chicago Museum Campus master plan, Cityfront Center and Cleveland’s TRW World Headquarters while working as an associate and project designer with Lohan Associates in Chicago.

He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Architecture from Ohio University in 1973, and a graduate diploma in Urban Design from Oxford “Brooks” University, Oxford, England in 1975. He also received an educational exchange award from Oxford to the Moscow Architectural Institute in the former USSR in 1975 and has attended Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design. He is a registered architect in Illinois, Wisconsin, Ohio, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and holds NCARB Certification.

Yas has worked on numerous award-winning national and international projects, including design project awards from the American Institute of Architects, HUD, Oxford University and Ohio University.

Yas’ history with civic involvement includes: Evanston Plan Commission (8 years), Evanston Preservation Commission (6 years), Evanston Arts Center Board of Trustees President and Board of Directors / Design Evanston. He is a frequent lecturer and panel member for presentations on the subject of Architecture and Urban Design. He was a featured speaker at the 2001 AIA National Convention in Denver, and has served as a Chicago Chapter AIA Delegate to AIA National Conventions.

Before starting at YAS Architecture, LLC. in early 2000, Auf der Heide worked as architect for over three years at Seattle, WA-based Lane Williams Architects following two years with Chicago-based Carow Architects Planners. He earned a Master of Architecture degree from the University of Washington in 1995 and a Bachelor of Science in Architectural Studies degree from the Ohio State University in 1988. He traveled to San Lucas, Mexico to work as a member of a design/build graduate studio in 1995. He was a UNESCO volunteer in France and Czechoslovakia in 1991, where he performed construction and field survey work. He participated in the External Studies program through Ohio State University at Oxford University in 1987. Auf der Heide is a registered architect and a member of the American Institute of Architects.

A native of Scotland, Macneil’s prior experience includes positions with the Edinburgh-based Hugh Martin Partnership and Bamber Gray Architects, as well as Kiltie Offshore Design in Aberdeen.

Some notable projects, prior to his work with YAS Architecture, LLC. are: Bank and Office Development, No. 6 George Street, Edinburgh; Luxury Condominium / Retail Mixed-Use Development, George Square, Glasgow; Gleneagles Hotel Conference and Leisure Facilities, Perthshire; St. Patrick’s Church Hall Extension and New Hotel, Cowgate-Edinburgh and the Hospital for Elderly and Mentally Infirm, Tippethill.

Macneil received both his Bachelor of Science degree (1996), and his Post-Graduate Diploma in Advanced Architectural Studies (1997) specializing in Urban and Ecological Design from Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen, Scotland. He is a member of the Royal Institute of British Architects, and is registered with the Architect’s Registration Board (ARB).

Hasemeyer received his Bachelor of Science degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts (1990). Hasemeyer manages the daily business operations of the firm.

Ashley received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications from North Carolina State University, with a concentration in Public Relations and Marketing, and a minor in Spanish. She is a member of SMPS (Society for Marketing Professionals), as well as AIGA, the Professional Association for Design.