CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Charleston Mayor Amy Goodwin will be up for reelection next year, but a possible second term is not the top concern on her mind.
Goodwin said during an appearance on Monday’s “580 Live” that her top priority is ensuring the city is ready to move out of the coronavirus pandemic.
“The most difficult period, I think, that any of us have ever faced in our lifetime,” she said.
Goodwin’s comments followed new numbers from the Charleston Convention and Visitors Bureau noting the city’s hotel occupancy rate was at 75% during the most recent weekend. Hotels had a 77% occupancy rate during the same time in 2019.
“All indications, especially this weekend, we’re heading in the right direction,” she added. “We didn’t have to lay anybody off. Our budget is very strong, and that’s in large part to our city manager, Jonathan Storage, being the steady hand at the wheel.”
Goodwin was elected in November 2018 and became Charleston’s first female mayor the following January.