By Rick Steelhammer
For HDMedia
Charleston’s biggest annual paving program in recent history is underway with 25 of the city’s 300 miles of streets scheduled to receive a fresh coat of asphalt this year.
Thanks to new agreements with state and federal funding partners, Charleston has $5 million available for this year’s resurfacing work, according to Mayor Amy Shuler Goodwin.
“It’s the largest paving cycle I can remember,” Goodwin said. “It was about $1.5 million when I first came in as mayor, and it’s averaged about $3 million a year in recent years.”
From 2019, when Goodwin took office, through 2025, the City of Charleston has spent more than $18.4 million to pave more than 115 miles of streets and roads, preserving and extending the life of its transportation system
“When paving’s in progress, it can be an inconvenience at times,” she said. “But our streets connect people to work, school, businesses, parks and one another. Maintaining that infrastructure is one of the most important ways we care for our neighborhoods and the people who call them home.”
Having well-maintained streets also promotes public safety by providing easily accessible venues for ambulances, police vehicles and fire trucks, is good for business, and can be a factor in attracting new businesses to the city, Goodwin said. In fact, Cycling USA, which has held its last two national championship racing events in Charleston, cited the pavement quality on city streets as a reason to make Charleston its host city, the mayor said.
What drivers should expect
City Council members work with city officials a year in advance of the paving work to develop a priority list for the coming summer’s paving project. Then personnel from a variety of city departments work with contractors to coordinate schedules, review drainage concerns and address other issues that could affect the project.
Goodwin said the past two winters have been especially damaging to the city’s streets, making the extra funding for this year’s paving program especially welcome.
When paving work is in progress, the city and its contractor, West Virginia Paving, work to keep residents informed of work in their neighborhoods through door hangers, notices on parked vehicles, and posting updates on the city’s traffic information page.
Among the biggest individual paving projects being tackled this year are:
- 1.3-mile stretch of Curtis Price Way, connecting Piedmont Road with Hubbard Hospice House in the city’s far East End
- 1.3-mile segment of Oakwood Road in South Hills
- 1-mile segment of Gordon Drive between Dabney Drive and Castlegate Road in Fort Hill
- .9-mile section of Chesterfield Avenue between 39th and 50th streets in Kanawha City
Read more from HDMedia, here.
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