Decker Legge and Kemp, DLK, was formed in 1993 when Howard Decker and Kevin merged their practice with that of Kevin's wife's. Diane Legge Kemp had been working as a sole practitioner for several years after leaving SOM, where she was made the first female partner, and was responsible for some of the most distinguished buildings done by the firm.



The new DLK Architecture and Urban Design became dominant in the art of designing beautiful, functional, and durable large-scale public infrastructure projects in collaboration with the leading engineers of the region. Together they tackled the most pressing challenges of the region's transit, roadway, and public space infrastructure, and crafting in the process some of the most beloved civic architecture in the region, helping the City of Chicago and surrounding municipalities and agencies redefine the region as a world-class one with public spaces rivaling the most elegant cities of the world.