Several months ago, Roseboro Mayor Roland Hall and the town’s Board of Commissioners made a commitment to grow their small municipality.

They put action behind that commitment, talking to area businessmen about investing in the downtown and, in turn, making their own, beginning talks about adding additional parking spaces and eyeing visionary ways in which to utilize the old depot building.

Their dream, and the tenacious way in which town board members have tried to turn it into a reality, has paid off in multiple ways. And the end result is a town that’s on the verge of a business growth spurt.

With a new Kerr Drug Store now opened, a furniture store up and running in the downtown and another downtown drug store expected to open soon, there’s no question new life is being breathed into Roseboro.

Now word has come that a restaurant, a steak house at that, will be the latest business to set down roots in the western Sampson town, a welcome announcement for both government officials and residents who, without question, should now see that their town is growing and offering them many more amenities than they had even five years ago.

People should also sense a new strength in the town, one that should strengthen their own belief that an investment in Roseboro will be a good one and will bring positive returns.

It is to the credit of Hall and commissioners that they saw the town as it could be and set out to paint that picture for any and all who would take a closer look.

Their belief in the town has become infectious, and now others share that belief, so much so, that people are willing to invest their own money and time into it.

None of this would have been possible had it not been for the vision of Hall and the town board, and the action they put behind that vision.

Roseboro is a small town. It’s had, over the years, its share of problems. But in the past few weeks and months, a transformation has taken place, starting with the opening of the Western District Park and continuing through the opening of, one by one, businesses around town.

We applaud Roseboro officials for refusing to give up on their small corner of the county, for believing in it and for helping others to see what was possible with a little belief and a willingness to work together.

It has proven a winning approach to growing the town and it is one worth applauding.