Downtowns have long been the hearts of small-town America, and Winchester is no different.

More than just a location for businesses, downtowns were the focal point of a community, a place to gather and truly celebrate a city’s identity.

Although urban sprawl has taken over and all area businesses are vital to a community’s growth, the health of a city’s downtown continues to be a key measure of its ability to thrive in the 21st Century.

Winchester has some very unique features with the courthouse, the former post office, city hall, a variety of government and quasi-government organizations and even The Winchester Sun serving as great anchors to the central district of the city.

Main Street, with its elevated sidewalks and unique architecture, offers a picturesque return to days gone by.

It is encouraging to see the injection of new blood, so to speak, on Main Street with a variety of new business ventures and building improvements going on. Certainly there is more work to be done, but we hope to see this progress continue and gain momentum through individuals showing their civic pride.

The city has its role to play when it comes to master planning and code enforcement, but the biggest driver of improvement is each downtown business has to step up and do their part.

This ranges from picking up trash on the sidewalk to painting the exterior to making sure windows are clean and everything in between.

The Sun plans to lead by example.

We will soon begin repair of the painted name across the front of our building as well as commit to keeping the area around our building clean each day.

Everyone can see the progress being made in downtown — and be part of the solution — by taking part of the Holiday Hop that starts today and runs through Sunday until at least 5 p.m. each day (7 p.m. today and 6 p.m. Friday).

When you are done, drive through the rest of the city and along the bypass, looking at all the business offerings with new eyes.

Whether you have lived here your entire life or just moved to Clark County, we urge you to become a tourist in your own community.

You will be surprised by what you discover right here at home.