Meet Dee Powell | urban planner + urban designer + place creator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dee Powell and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dee, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I didn’t like having a boss that just did things to appease people instead of doing things with passion. That’s when I really saw that passion isn’t driving everybody the way it drives me. Knowing that I knew for me to be able to pursue and tap into my passions I had to bet on them and take myself seriously. To be honest lol, I never wanted to start my own business because I didn’t want the responsibility – something like divine intervention I guess lol.

What should our readers know about your business?
My business is a service-based urban planning and urban design consultant. Basically, I work with communities and individuals to understand urban planning, zoning, land use, and policies and I create places – which is my favorite. What sets me a part from others doing this kind of work – I’m 100% embedded in everything from start to finish. I based my whole business around being relatable and transparent as possible; you’ll never find another urban planner like me.

Most proud of my current project – the MLK Food Park in South Dallas! It’s my biggest and most personal project I’ve had the opportunity to work on thus far. I’m mad humbled by all of it. And beyond proud of myself for doing something a lot said wasn’t possible in this space.

I honestly got to this point as a by-product of leaving my previous job in 2019 and knowing I wanted to do more. I wanted to make more of an impact in my field but I wasn’t sure how to really get there. But I knew I had to break my own glass ceiling to create work that never felt like work. By no means has it been easy lol. Every day is a new challenge, a new learning curve but also a new lesson so I’m grateful for all the bumps/bruises.

For me, I put my challenges into whatever journal I’m writing in at the time. I do my best to write it out then find ways to make the challenges work in my favor. That’s all I aim to do when things don’t go as planned.

Lessons learned – do whatever is gonna make you happy today! And don’t let anyone, friends or family, discourage you because everyone won’t see your dream or your vision which is okay.

As for me and the brand and our story, just know starting blckspces when I did saved me from myself. I built all of it while I was at fairly low part of my life and I had little faith in my passions being able to take me where I wanted to go. Just remember the name ‘blckspces’.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I’m from Arlington (AGG Stand Up!) so automatically have to take them to Crispy’s on the east side. Downtown to the new library because it’s dope, drink/kick it at at Texas Live, and have to go by Inclusion coffee or Urban Alchemy because they’re two of my favorite coffee spots in the city lol.

I say all that and my best friend lives seven minutes away from me! But I have gotten more into adventuring and discovering Black history in the city whenever I can so that ties into the things I find interesting and exciting – the way Black people lived and/or existed when the city looked a lot different.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
First and foremost I gotta show love to Krista Nightengale and The Better Block.Without her blinding faith in me to exist in this space I’m not sure if I’d be this fulfilled in my “work”. More than anything my family and my best friend, Zoe Clark – they have to deal with me when I’m going through “creative moments” lol and all the while they give relentless love/support/encouragement. From the bottom of my heart, everything I am is fueled 100% by the people that poured into me when I couldn’t pour into myself. I love you!

And to all the Black planners I’ve met over the last nine months – you motivate me to do this work with so much conviction and love. Last but least, shoutout to Nipsey Hussle. Your words hold weight on my soul every time I do what I do. The Marathon Continues…

Website: blckspces.com

Instagram: @thedee_p

Linkedin: Desiree D. Powell

Twitter: @BLCKSPCES

Facebook: Desiree ‘Dee’ Powell

Youtube: blckspces