Published 11:04 am Tuesday, July 7, 2020
Main Street Winchester has been designated as a 2020 Accredited Main Street America program by the National Main Street Center, which recognizes communities across the country that are working to restore their historic downtowns, bringing life back to city centers that were often left behind by sprawling commercial development in the second half of the 20th century.
Kentucky Main Street is a program of the Kentucky Heritage Council, the State Historic Preservation Office, an agency in the Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet.
Kentucky has the oldest Main Street program in the nation.
Main Street America has 10 “Standards of Performance” that it requires to be met before accrediting a program, among them that it “has broad-based community support for the commercial district revitalization process, with strong support from both the public and private sectors,” and that it “possesses a historic preservation ethic.”
Kentucky Main Street Coordinator Kitty Dougoud said, “Whenever you see a Kentucky Main Street sign or logo associated with a community you can be assured that something special is happening there.”
In 2019, Main Street Winchester worked to enhance, promote and preserve the vitality and livability of Downtown Winchester through some of the projects listed below:
— Promote downtown development with the Downtown Development Investment Fund.
— Increase pedestrian foot traffic with engaging promotions such as Rock The Block, Sip And Stroll, Christmas parade and the annual Beer Cheese Festival.
“We are proud to recognize this year’s 860 Nationally Accredited Main Street America programs that have dedicated themselves to strengthening their communities,” said Patrice Frey, president and CEO of the National Main Street Center. “These Accredited Main Street programs have proven to be powerful engines for revitalization by sparking impressive economic returns and preserving the character of their communities. During these challenging times, these Main Street programs will be key to bringing economic vitality back to commercial districts and improving quality of life during the recovery process.”