Council Member Kiara Daniels to Serve as Tacoma’s Deputy Mayor in 2025

TACOMA, Wash. – The Tacoma City Council has appointed At-Large Council Member Kiara Daniels to serve as Tacoma’s Deputy Mayor in 2025. She was elected to the Tacoma City Council in 2021 and currently serves as the Chair of the Economic Development Committee. Deputy Mayor Daniels is a proud Tacoma native and resident of Central Tacoma’s Hilltop neighborhood. She is a longtime community advocate who values giving back and building a stronger community for all.

“My love for Tacoma has no limits and I am excited to serve as Deputy Mayor for 2025,” said Deputy Mayor Daniels. “Our community has big dreams about its future, and I share those dreams. Our city has come so far in the past decade and we continue to make great progress every day on some of the most challenging issues municipalities face in our state. I am dedicating my time as Deputy Mayor to ensuring that we maintain our focus on increasing the availability of affordable housing, bolstering local economic development, and ensuring that our young people have robust opportunities to help keep them safe and productive. I also know that partnerships are key to success, and I look forward to reaching out to community, businesses, and all our partners as Deputy Mayor to deepen our collaboration in 2025. This is going to be a great year for Tacoma, and I can’t wait to get to work as your Deputy Mayor.”

As the Chair of the Economic Development Committee, Deputy Mayor Daniels is leading the effort to update the City’s Economic Development Strategic Plan, which will guide and shape the future of Tacoma’s local economy, employment, and business culture. In addition, her passion for supporting local businesses led her to establish funding in the City’s adopted 2025-2026 Biennial Budget for a new Business Safety and Resilience Program that will launch later this year. She is also keenly aware of the important link between accessible childcare and economic stability for families, leading her to galvanize efforts to secure $1.5 million in City funding for the expansion of the Multicultural Child and Family Hope Center to increase affordable childcare services for low-income families.

She is a committed advocate for affordable housing and sponsored the City’s Anti-Displacement Strategy, outlining community-identified projects, ideas, and actions to enhance and strengthen Tacoma’s neighborhoods. She has been a partner in the regional Black Homeownership Initiative, which aims to address racial inequities in Washington state’s housing ecosystem, and successfully passed an amendment to Home in Tacoma that aims to help advance home ownership. She is currently reviewing the Multifamily Tax Exemption as part of the Government Performance and Finance Committee to ensure that the policy continues to advance the City’s development goals. At the state level, she has been a vital advocate for Tacoma and new policies to increase affordable housing and public health services.

Deputy Mayor Daniels is committed to improving our community while maintaining Tacoma’s unique creative identity and ensuring young people are not left behind. As part of her commitment to Tacoma’s vitality, she is overseeing the effort to reauthorize Tacoma Creates, a community-supported initiative to increase access to arts, culture, heritage, and science experiences throughout our city, especially for youth. In addition, she was a key partner in Mayor Victoria Woodards’ effort to invest City resources in the launch of the Summer Teen Late Nights program with Metro Parks, Tacoma Public Schools, and other partners, helping to ensure young people have safe space after school. She regularly gives back to the community and invites the public to join her in service events, including a recent litter clean up and work to prepare meals at the Tacoma Rescue Mission.

Prior to her time on the City Council, Deputy Mayor Daniels worked as the business and community development coordinator for Spaceworks Tacoma and led the Hilltop Business Support program, which aims to secure space and resources for Black-owned businesses in the Hilltop Business District. In 2020, she was awarded the City of Tacoma’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Emerging Leader Award for her commitment to service, and she describes all of her work to date as her “love letter” to Tacoma. Deputy Mayor Daniels’ inspiration for serving the community grew while she attended The Evergreen State College, where she earned a master’s degree in public administration, and she is proud to follow in her parents’ footsteps – each of whom spent more than 30 years serving the State of Washington.

“I am proud to welcome Kiara Daniels as our new Deputy Mayor,” said Mayor Woodards. “Her leadership, dedication, and passion for our community will help us build a stronger, more vibrant Tacoma together.”