Dr. Tamarah Holmes serves as Director of the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), where she leads the Commonwealth’s housing, community development, and economic revitalization portfolio. In this role, she oversees statewide policy and investment strategies that expand housing access and affordability, support infrastructure and downtown revitalization, and strengthen communities through coordinated development initiatives that promote economic mobility and long-term resilience.
With more than two decades of public-sector leadership experience spanning New Jersey and Virginia, including Chesterfield County, Dr. Holmes has built a career focused on housing affordability and sustainability, neighborhood revitalization, and community investment. She is recognized for translating complex policy into effective programs, managing significant public funding streams, and advancing cross-sector partnerships that deliver measurable, place-based outcomes for communities.
Prior to her appointment as Director, Dr. Holmes served as Director of the Office of Broadband at DHCD, where she led one of the nation’s most ambitious statewide broadband initiatives. Under her leadership, Virginia made historic progress toward universal connectivity, leveraging innovative funding strategies and public-private partnerships to position broadband as essential infrastructure supporting economic growth, workforce access, healthcare delivery, educational attainment, and quality of life in rural and underserved communities.
During this time, Dr. Holmes also served as Virginia’s Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) Program Manager, directing strategic federal investments that supported economic diversification, workforce development, infrastructure modernization, and community revitalization across 25 counties and eight cities in Southwest Virginia. Her work strengthened regional collaboration and advanced long-term development strategies in communities experiencing economic transition.
Dr. Holmes is a graduate of the Virginia Executive Institute and has received numerous recognitions for her impact-driven leadership, including the Robert W. Baker Achievement Award and the New River Valley Regional Commission’s “Friend of the Valley.” She was named one of Virginia Business magazine’s 100 People to Meet in 2026 as an Impact Maker and was recently honored as the 2026 Excellence in Virginia Government Grace E. Harris Award recipient.
