BATTLEMART

Strategies and Tactics for Fighting

Wal-Mart in Your Community
 Remember that a Wal-Mart store is never a done deal, and
every Goliath has its vulnerabilities. Every community is
unique, and you, the citizens, know your community bet-
ter than any chain retailer ever could. Local officials are
unique, local zoning codes differ, local parcels of land pres-
ent unique opportunities and challenges. These are just
Fighting Wal-Mart some of your advantages.

An Introduction
You are reading this either because you want to stop a Wal-
Mart from coming to your community, or you want to pre-
vent an existing Wal-Mart from expanding or moving to a
new Supercenter site. We’re going to help you fight that
battle. This year, many Wal-Mart stores will get defeated or
seriously delayed by citizen’s groups.
This battle can get hot. Neighbor will turn against neigh-
bor over this issue; even discord within families is not un-
usual. This issue literally “hits you where you live.” There
are many people in your town who will want a Wal-Mart,
and for economics reasons, can only focus on getting the
cheapest bargain they can find. You should expect strong
opposition locally. Often Wal-Mart and their developer will
hire consultants to organize supporters in your town

Anyone can fight Wal-Mart and win. In his book Slam Dunk- It takes a village to beat a Wal-Mart. Your village can be the
ing Wal-Mart, activist Al Norman writes, next one to do it.

Some of the best people I have met in my travels

are people who had no formal background in
community organizing. They will say, “I’m just a
housewife,” or “I just own a small business in town.”
And then they will go out and blow the opposition
away.

This book will give you a brief overview of how to begin

your fight against Wal-Mart. These tactics and strategies
have been used by site-fighters across the country to pre-
vent Wal-Mart from coming to or expanding in a town.
There is no one “right way” to stop a Wal-Mart, but there
are common strategies that if employed will give you the
best possible chance of success. You can beat Wal-Mart
– you just have to know where they’re vulnerable.

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 STEP 1: Form a Citizens Group

1. Form A Citizens Group

• Try to create an “all walks of life” group that draws
from civic, religious, and education communities,
It may take a village to beat a Wal- as well as from different neighborhoods and age-
Mart—but that village is motivat- ranges, etc. You want to be as diverse as possible.
ed by one passionate person.
• You don’t need to have non-profit status, just go
You need a vehicle locally to get to a local bank, open up an account and get an
your anti Wal-Mart message out IRS number for the bank account, then begin
to the public: if there is no exist- soliciting donations.
ing local neighborhood associa-
tion or citizen’s group already up • Your group should begin meeting in living rooms,
and running, create a new one. not in public places. You need to be able to talk
Include neighbors, clergy, educators, union members, re- strategy in a private setting.
tirees, former public officials, merchants, etc. Be as broad-
based as possible. Your core group can do well with as
few as 12 people. The steering committee needs to meet
at least weekly during
a campaign. The larger
group can meet less of-
ten, but should be con-
nected by email status
reports weekly.

Starting a Citizens Group

• Give your new group an upbeat name like “Our
Town First”, which implies that the homeowners,
taxpayers, and citizens of Our Town come first,
not the out-of-town developers and their out-
of-town corporate retailers. No need to have the
words “Wal-Mart” in the title.

4 5
 STEP 2: Raise Money

2. Raise Money • Put your money in a trust fund. For privacy

purposes, have your attorney handle this fund.

Your citizen’s group should set up a sepa-

rate fundraising committee to focus exclu- Fundraising 101
sively on raising money. You will need to • Start off with a goal of $15,000.
raise at least $15,000 to start, which will
allow you to retain a land use attorney, • Approach homeowners, businesses, unions
consider other experts, and begin to think and others: ask them to
about visibility expenses (lawn signs, ra- become a partner for
dio spots, etc). Let your local media know $500. Find 30 partners.
that you are raising money, but that you
expect Wal-Mart to outspend you by ten- • Approach local mer-
or twenty-fold. Use the media to drive chants: given Wal-
home the point that your citizen’s group Mart’s impact on local
is at a major disadvantage financially when taking on Wal- business, these can be
Mart--but you have one thing Wal-Mart doesn’t have: local an invaluable source of
residents who care about your town’s future. support.

• Make sure you can

Make A Clear Budget guarantee donors’
privacy. Many local business-owners want to
• Prepare a one-page budget to show funders. This
help but are afraid.
will both increase your credibility as well as help
you plan your campaign. • Avoid labor-intensive events, like car washes and
bake sales.
• Have your lawyer estimate the cost of local hear-
ings—before having to go to court.

• Cost out any other experts you want to testify.

Turn to the appendix of this booklet for more fundraising
Money Matters tips, or visit http://walmartwatch.com/battlemart for even
more information.
• Set up a Funding Committee that focuses solely on
raising money.

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3. Hire the Experts You Need
Wal-Mart has their hired guns, and
you need them too.
Experts can be invaluable assets in
building a well-founded and cred-
ible case against Wal-Mart, both
in the court of law and the court
of public opinion. Above all, you
will need a land use attorney, also
known as a zoning lawyer. In addi-
tion, a traffic engineer, a hydrolo-
gist or hydrogeologist may all be useful. You are not alone
in your fight, but you will need expert assistance.
Why Experts?
During a zoning hearing, you need to introduce into the
record important expert testimony:
• Impact on property values
• Impact on traffic
• Impact on taxes & the local economy
• Environmental impacts
A Zoning Lawyer Is Key
• A Wal-Mart application is a zoning case, and you
will need a zoning lawyer to argue your side.
Zoning cases are quasi-judicial hearings and very
by-the-book.
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STEP 3: Hiring Experts
• A lawyer will help find the best legal angles in
your town’s Comprehensive Plan and Zoning
Code.
• A lawyer also shows that you are serious and
ready to go to court if necessary to stop this
project.
• Any discretionary actions by the Planning Board/
City Council are a legal opening to delay or kill a
project. Appeals typically take 6 months to a
year, and time is money to a developer.
• Note: No public official wants to be sued by his/her
own constituents - this is a public relations night-
mare, and a fear Wal-Mart capitalizes on.
Questions to ask a lawyer before retaining him
or her:
• What land use cases have you handled that
involved large-scale retail projects?
• Can you provide us with a list of references for
your major land use cases?
• Which developers have you represented?
• Which citizens groups have you represented?
• What is your hourly rate for community groups?
• Though you haven’t studied our case in detail,
what do you think are the most promising legal
issues to pursue in this case?
STEP 3: Hiring Experts

• Who would handle our case as your backup if you 4. Create a Fact Sheet & Website
were not available?

Hiring Other Experts Produce a one- or two-sid-

ed “Frequently Asked Ques-
In addition to a land use attorney, your coalition might tions” literature piece about
also need several other experts to testify on your behalf. A the Wal- Mart plan in your
traffic engineer can explain how a large new business will community that you can
change roads and road use in your town. Water issue ex- use as a mailer, or a hand-
perts such as hydrologists or hydrogeologists can discuss out, that boils down your
how a new or expanded Wal-Mart will influence the local specific arguments to a few
water supply. (The nearest university might be able to help talking points. Do the same
you find water experts.) And an environmental engineer on the internet. Create a
will be able to discuss the new development’s impact on website, with a blog, that
the local ecosystem. lays out your basic issues in short, easy to read statements.
Focus mainly on why this plan, in this place, is wrong, and
why local officials should vote it down. Gather quotes
from local opinion-makers and residents about why this
proposal is a bad fit for your town. Compare the size of the
proposed store to your downtown area. Quote your town’s
Comprehensive Land Use Plan.

Distributing Information
• Create a website that includes an on-line petition
to sign against the project.

•
Write a one-page fact sheet about the project you
are fighting, and why you are against it.
- Goal: Simple and engaging

• Create an e-mail alert system by asking for e-mail

addresses and maintaining a contact list.

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 5. Be Constantly Visible in the Media
A Wal-Mart battle is a campaign,
and you have to keep on winning
every day of that campaign. If you
can shape public opinion, you can
win the battle. Begin immediately
by generating a large volume of let-
ters to the editor. Any time there is
a story in the press about Wal-Mart,
use that story as an opportunity to send in another half
dozen letters. Look to create press releases for your group
at every turn. If any given story in the paper mentions only
pro Wal-Mart opinions, ask for equal time to get out the
“other side of the Wal.” Be as visible as often as you can in
the media
Media Relations
• Respond to anything Wal-Mart says. Get in the
news as often as you can.
• Invite Wal-Mart’s CEO to visit your town to see
why the project is wrong.
• Think about which type of media is most effec-
tive in your community: radio is often over-
looked.
• LTEs: Everybody reads letters to the editor; re-
cruit trusted volunteers to sign the letters.
• Designate a press person or team who deals
with all the media relations.
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6. Present an Alternative
Wal-Mart will start a pro-
development group in your
community, and one of the
first things they will accuse
you of is being anti-busi-
ness and anti-growth. For
this reason, it is important
in every zoning proposal to
illustrate not only what you don’t want, but what you do
want. Explain what you would rather see happen with this
site. Develop an alternative vision of what a project on this
property could look like. Ask a local architect to draw up
a smaller, mixed-use project of office space, housing, and
neighborhood retail, to show citizens that being anti-Wal-
Mart does not mean being anti-growth.
Questions to Answer
•
What else could this land be used for – ideally, an
alternative the entire community can rally behind.
– Otherwise, WMT will portray opponents
as the “Just Say No/Anti-Growth” crowd
•
Present alternatives in the most attractive light
possible – this will make WMT look less desirable.
- Draw your idea to show what the area
could look like.
• Are there other potential buyers or users?
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 STEP 7: Lobby Local Officials

7. Lobby Local Officials

• Lobby all Board members with letters and phone
calls.
In the end, it all comes
down to votes. It might be • Note: Always be polite, concise, respectful and try
a Planning Board, it might to stay on-message.
be a City Council--but it – Think about drafting talking points.
comes down to winning a
vote. A Wal-Mart campaign
means winning a majority
of votes on your council. If
you have a Planning Board
of 7 people, you need to
win over 4 of them. Deter-
mine who your most likely
allies are and what you
know about them. Who has their ear, who is part of their
support network? Who influences them?

Because elected officials behave differently when they

know they’re being watched, always get your troops out
to every public meeting, and pack the place until the bit-
ter end.

Tips for Lobbying

• The whole fight comes down to winning a
majority vote on your Planning Board or City
Council.

• Do you know your decision-makers? If not, who

does? Who might lobby which officials?

• Sit down with them individually: talk about who

else might vote your way.

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 APPENDIX A
Issues You Can Raise in a Zoning Case
• The adverse economic impact of Wal-Mart on
local taxes, jobs, and area businesses.
• Public safety and cost of crime: many Wal-Mart’s
are open late, or even all night and are poorly
guarded.
• Negative impact on resi-
dential property values.
• Air, noise and light
pollution.
• Filling of wetlands, silt-
ation of streams.
• The project is too “intense”
for the area, the scale is
too large.
• The town infrastructure —
schools, sewer and water,
roads and housing, etc., —
were not built to handle such large develop-
ment.
• The traffic congestion will worsen.
• Incompatible with the town’s Comprehensive
Land Use Plan.
• No market need for the store—area already
saturated with retail.
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Remember…
You will have to prove your point with expert testimony
during a hearing. For example, if you say property values
will suffer, you have to hire a real estate appraiser who will
testify to that effect, and do an analysis to show it.
Or, at a minimum, shoot WMT’s hired guns full of holes.
Closing Principles
• A new Wal-Mart store is never a “done deal.”
• Wal-Mart tries to create an aura of inevitability –
you need to try to pierce that.
• Wal-Mart has been stopped hundreds of times.
• All zoning is local, every case is unique.
• It takes a village to beat a Wal-Mart; you need a
committee to motivate the village.
• A Wal-Mart fight is like a political campaign: talk to
political organizers.
• Time is on your side. The longer the delay, the bet-
ter chance Wal-Mart will leave. Time is money to
Wal-Mart and their developers.
• Be ready: the battle will get hot. Wal-Mart may
create a “citizens” group and hire PR firms to turn
people against you.
• Wal-Mart imitates grassroots groups. Any strategy
you employ—like lawnsigns—they will imitate.
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APPENDIX A: Closing Principles
• You are not alone, but you will need expert
assistance.
• Wal-Mart will greatly outspend you. Let people
know this in advance.
• If you don’t fight, you have a 0% chance of
winning.
• No one can guarantee you will beat Wal-Mart.
But the odds of losing rise to 100% if you do
nothing.
• Wal-Mart is NOT a government mandate. You
don’t have to have one in your neighborhood.
• Wal-Mart loves “inevitability” – piercing that aura
is key.
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APPENDIX B
Tips for the Fight
The following letter was written by a member of a citizens group
that successfully blocked Wal-Mart from coming to their town of
Tammany, LA. Included are tips and ideas for running a success-
ful campaign.
ALL THESE PROJECTS HAVE A LIFE OF THEIR OWN, SO
what works in one situation will not always transfer to
another. We worked hard on building public support
by educating the public though a variety of newspaper
ads. We worked the battle on every front from the local
politicians, to the regulatory agencies, and in court. We
were blessed to have a few large financial donors, but
we worked hard to solicit many of the $100 donations
and that made a large difference. As a group we re-
alized that the battle was a marathon and did not take ini-
tial loses as any deterrent to our cause. In our battle we
regarded any delay as positive to our cause, and that is
not usually the case (NOTE: in fact, any delay is ALMOST
ALWAYS good – delay costs $$$ and hurts Wal-Mart!). We
also had the impact of the hurricane which one changed
the landscape of the area and also added great tax incen-
tives to building that are finished by year end 2008, so
the developer was motivated to settle. Once we got a
lawsuit filed that would have required possibly years to
settle and depositions of local officials the tone change
to one of settlement. We used that leverage to restrict
the tenets of the center and restrict the other property
set aside for future housing from apartments to garden
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APPENDIX B: Tips for the Fight
That said, I think our success in this case was a result of a
number of things:
1. The inclusion of the two Big Boxes was a truly bad idea
that did not fit with the overall concept of an “Upscale
retail center” and unique character of the area. This
was self-evident from the very beginning (i.e. emphasize
what makes YOUR area unique and special, and how this
development would harm that).
2. We set up a web site, and an email list with hundreds
of addresses, to get the word out to the residents and
encourage them to act (maybe there is a web-savvy high
school or college student who can help).
3. Many, many people contacted Zoning Commission
and Parish Council members by phone, postal mail,
and email to express their opposition to the devel-
opment. We are now following up these contacts with
more, to say “Thank you” for their support in not only the
financial area, but in regards to calls letters, faxes, and
letters to the Commission and Council members, since we
know this will probably not be the last time we need their
support (It should go without saying, but ALWAYS be polite.
Otherwise, this person(s) should NOT be lobbying public of-
ficials (but there’s always plenty of other things they can be
doing to help).
4. We got repeated, positive news coverage (Al Norman
recommends having a designated press person or team who
deals with the media).
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APPENDIX B: Tips for the Fight
5. Key members of our leadership met regularly to
plan strategy, and coordinate efforts on all aspects
(traffic, environmental, water quality, land use planning,
neighborhood groups, state and federal agencies, etc.)
6. Before each meeting, we put many signs out along the
area, put fliers on people’s mailboxes, and sent emails
and made phone calls to residents to make sure they at-
tended.
7. At each meeting, we were represented by someone
who was very experienced in arguing before a delibera-
tive body (Refer to the section in Battlemart dealing with
hiring experts:http://walmartwatch.com/battlemart/go/
cat/expert_testimony_whistleblower)
In short, we refused to be lulled into thinking that the
Zoning Commission and Parish Council would “do the
right thing” and left nothing to chance.
It was a lot of work, but the load was shared by many
people, so no one person had to do it all (Perhaps the
most important point – delegation and shared responsibility
is absolutely essential!).
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APPENDIX B: Tips for the Fight APPENDIX B: Tips for the Fight

however, has nothing to do with electoral politics, and

Tips for Fundraising
From Sprawl-Busters founder Al Norman
Your citizen’s group should set up a separate fundraising
committee to focus exclusively on raising money. You will
need to raise at least $15,000 to start, which will allow you
to retain a land use attorney, consider other experts, and
begin to think about visibility expenses (lawn signs, radio
spots, etc). To ask for this money, you should prepare a one
page budget that spells out exactly what you need, then
go to your local business community and ask for 15 busi-
nesses to become “sustaining supporters” of your effort at
$1,000 each. Unless you are involved in a ballot campaign,
such contributions do not have to be publicly reported.
Check in your local directory to see if you have a local
union branch of the Service Employees International Union
(SEIU) or United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW).
Sit down with them and talk about what kind of resources
you need. Avoid getting bogged down in labor-intensive
events like tag sales or spaghetti suppers. Such events are
great for expanding your email alert list, but will not raise
the kind of money you need to fight Wal-Mart. Let your lo-
cal media know that you are raising money, but that you
expect Wal-Mart to outspend you by ten- or twenty-fold.
Use the media to drive home the point your citizen’s group
is at a major disadvantage financially when taking on Wal-
Mart—but you have on thing Wal-Mart doesn’t have: local
residents who care about your town’s future.
citizen’s groups can solicit donations from residents and
merchants who want to anonymously support the cause.
For these people, the preferred contribution is a cashier’s
check made out to the coalition. Many business people do
not want to be “spotted” in a campaign, but if their con-
fidentiality can be maintained, are very willing to spend
their money to stop a company that is spending its money
to put everyone else out of business. Anonymous donors
also have the peace of mind in knowing that their contri-
bution to your campaign will not result in a flood of similar
requests.
The best businesses to approach for money are the real es-
tate interests who own the land on which other area local
shopping malls sit. Usually the chain stores like Sears, and
JC Penney are not worth approaching. They will pass you
off to a comatose corporate headquarters. But the land-
owner who will lose his tenants is a motivated donor.

If you are in any kind of ballot question—initiative peti-

tion or voter referendum—you have to keep track of the
name and address of every donor. A zoning campaign,

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Wal-Mart Watch aggressively tells a new, more truthful Wal-
Mart story. We are a clearinghouse for activists, policymakers,
and those who have an interest in challenging Wal-Mart and
other big-box stores to be responsive to the needs of different
communities. We bridge the gap between ordinary citizens and
community organizations concerned about Wal-Mart’s un-
checked growth and negative impact on our society. Our aim
is real change –- transparent and lasting -- to benefit all Wal-
Mart communities. To this end, we challenge the world’s largest
retailer, Wal-Mart, to become a better employer, neighbor and
corporate citizen. To learn more about Wal-Mart Watch, visit
www.walmartwatch.com.