West Side (Charleston), West Virginia

The West Side is a neighborhood in the city of Charleston in Kanawha County, West Virginia, United States containing about 9,900 residents.^[1]

Abandoned train trestle bridge over the Kanawha River along Kanawha Boulevard West.

West Side
Neighborhood
Aerial view of Charleston's West Side neighborhood.
Country	United States
State	West Virginia
County	Kanawha
Neighborhood of	Charleston
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
Zip Code	25302
Area codes	304, 681

Located along the Kanawha River and the Elk River, the West Side is bounded by U.S. Route 60 to the north (W Washington St) and west (Patrick Street), the Kanawha River to the south and by the Elk River and Interstate 64 to the east. Like much of Charleston, the West Side suffers from large tracts of urban decay with 31% of West Side buildings vacant as of 2019^[2] as Charleston overall has lost roughly 45% of its peak population and is part of the Rust Belt. Over 40% of children on the West Side are living in poverty,^[3] more than double the national average (17.5%).^[4]

Points of Interest

• Luna Park Historic District - Site of the former Luna Park amusement park. Homes were built mostly after the demolition of the park and are the nicest example of this era on the West Side.^[5]
• Magic Island - a public park along the Kanawha River and off of Kanawha Blvd W.^[6]
• Elk City - a distinct sub-neighborhood within the West Side, currently undergoing gentrification.^[7]
• Shoney's/Big Boy Restaurant Museum - Roadside memorial at the site of the first Big Boy Restaurant.^[8]