Historic Preservation Advocacy Tools & Strategies

Know Your Opponent

• Oftentimes your opponent is not really who you think it is… Find out what’s going on "behind the scenes."
• Is it an individual or corporate entity?
• Is it the government and, if so, local, state or federal? What are the implications for each type of government involvement?
• Is it your neighbors? If so, how can you gain their support?
• Identify the opposition and find out what they respond to.
• Know the political connections of your adversary. Who do you know that might have similar connections and support your effort?
• Follow the money and who stands to profit. What’s in it for them?
• What’s the motivation? On the surface it may not be clear. Do some digging.
• Think methodically about strategy and go into battle by trying to offer something they want and the unattainable. Offer something the other side couldn’t get on their own. Time might be a carrot to dangle. Battles take time and time often translates into money and loss of revenue.
• Be aware of hidden agendas leading you down the wrong path. Don’t be naive and research all possible angles from the start.
• Don't be caught off-guard by doing your homework and research, research, research. Use your investigative skills to check the laws, any conflict of interest and cost-benefit analysis for all actions.

Clear Up Misconceptions

• Myths, miss-truths and outright lies can be very harmful and distract from the real issue in time of battle. Be wary of the consequences when claims come from seemingly credible sources. Know when to respond and when to lay low and hope it blows over.
• Distinguish the people from the problem by sticking to the facts and leaving out personal attacks or justifications.
• Be prepared with a well-thought out position statement on why the threatened resource should be saved.
• Anticipate having your points being attacked.
• From the start, send a clear message on what you want. Don’t be wishy-washy or go back and forth on the goal. Otherwise you’ll lose credibility and respect and will be less likely to be taken serious.
• Don’t stoop to opposition’s level, become involved altercations or be “baited” into making your group look foolish. Maintain focus, credibility and smile even when you know they’re lying to you. There will always be a next time
•  Don’t point out problems unless you’re prepared to offer or work on a solution.
• For newly formed groups with little credibility or track record, enlist help from more established preservation partners, through letters of support, site visits, presentations, news articles, testimonials, etc.
• Use economics and the “bottom line” to help support your cause by working/out the economic arguments (use of tax credits and savings, added cost of demolition versus saving building, increased property values in historic districts, etc.)
• Be ready with fact sheets, brochures and fliers to inform the public, media and decision-makers.
• Appeal to the heart as well as the head. Don’t rely on heritage or “feel good” stories to “make the save.” Need other back ups, like economics where easy to get attention and decision makers are more likely to listen to the “bottom line.”
• Preservationists perceived as obstacles to progress. Yes, but define “progress” and whose progress.

Identify the Players and Roles

• Enlist support of other special interest groups to your cause. Help draw the connections to their effort/cause and “power of collaboration” by reaching out to environmentalist, housing advocates, etc.
• Be proactive and practice damage control by talking with NIMBYs, property-rights advocates and others before they make you look bad.
• Know your preservationist. If it’s a strictly local issue, don’t expect strong state and national attention.
• Know when to call for help from your statewide preservation nonprofit, state historic preservation office and/or National Trust for Historic Preservation. Call them from the start, maintain regular contact and keep them “in the loop,” and don’t wait until the “11th hour.”
• Understand what the various local, state and national preservation organizations do, their differences, how they individually can help, as well as their limitations (such as ability to publicly advocate on behalf of your effort. ex. private nonprofit vs. state government).
• Build support from non-traditional sources with influence, such as the local business community, homebuilders, board of realtors, etc.
• To counter the intimidation factor and get the opposition to take notice, find a pro-bono attorney to lend advice.
• Set aside personalities – from both the opposition and internally within your preservation organization—and stick to issues.

Utilize the Political Forum

• Don’t surprise elected officials by making them “look bad.” It results in a short-term win with deadly, long-term consequences.
• Avoid trying to “train” your elected officials on preservation issues or force it down their throats. Instead invite them to attend your meeting, once, twice, three times…
• Know the rules and process for conducting public meetings.
• Don’t deny existence of the “Good Ole Boy” network. Instead use it to your advantage.
• Timing is everything. Determine when the best time is to ask for support or funding. Don’t ask for money after the budget has just been passed.
• Don’t assume that one meeting is enough to get your message across.
• Don’t stop after the issue is decided. Keep going and “stay in their face” to win other battles, build credibility and establish a reputation.
• Remain clam at all times and be rational.
• Show solidarity and get attention (ex. yard signs, tie yellow ribbons to porches/trees to signify support)
• Don’t confront others with a pre-set judgment that he or she is wrong or at fault.
• Make requests, not demands. Respond, don’t react.

Use the Media Wisely

• Don’t be intimidated by the media and instead cultivate relationships with reporters.
• Thank the media and recognize their efforts when they write favorable articles and invite them to meetings.
• Designate a good media spokesperson from your preservation group and stick to it. Pick someone who is articulate, is up to speed on the issue and is available when the media calls.
• Make it easy for the media by feeding them the facts and information and working around their deadlines.
• Use the media wisely instead of letting the media using your emotions against you.
• Try again and don’t be discouraged if something you send isn’t published.
• Volunteer to write a newspaper article or column.
• Choose your words wisely and know when to say, “no comment” or “I don’t know. Let me check on this and call you back.”
• Keep your message simple.
• Use “Most Endangered” listings to gain the media, public and public official’s attention. Think carefully on what you choose to list and define as a “save” or “loss.”
• Timing is everything. Know what will get the media's attention (ex. stage a march/protest, issue arm bands, create posters for visual effect, etc.)
• Choose the right media and understand their differences and who will be interested in your message (local press vs. assoc. press / television vs. print )
• Make regular “pitches” for magazine articles to your preservation partners at the state and national levels.
• Reach out to the media with your good news and “saves” too. Preservationists don’t use our media as effectively as when we lose a building as well as when we save a building.

Use 21st Technology

• Use the latest technologies to communicate effectively with a variety of individuals for multiple issues and to respond to “hot” emergencies.
• Create an updated list-serv to keep everyone “in the loop” on the latest news and upcoming events to avoid time-consuming evening meetings.
• Think strategically about the pros and cons of including your adversaries in your electronic communications. It will help them keep apprised but because it is so easy to use, it can also backfire. (ex. Not everyone participating may be aware that the opposition is also reading the e-mail.)
• Use digital images strategically to build support. A picture is worth a thousand words and might get attention. But avoid sending too many and slowing down e-mail systems.
• Use the “bcc” function to protect your e-mail contacts and conceal whom you are sending an e-mail to.
• Know that people will forward your e-mail so beware that someone you never intended might be reading your message.
• Use e-mail strategically to rally and involve more people. Focus on up-to-the minute updates and briefs to advocates stressing why right now is important, why they’re important, what they can do, and how they can do it.
• Use your talents and do a quick scan of your group to see who is “computer friendly” and can help with designing a web page, e-mail network, desk-top publishing, etc.
• Use e-mail only when it is going to make a difference and no more than once a week. Otherwise you can inundate your advocates (ex. “boy who cried wolf” – people stop reading them after awhile). Don’t overload them and only report when there is new information.

Maneuver Through the Obstacle Course

• If a “Good Ole Boy” network exists, try working within its system to get results.
• Think like the opposition and strategically on how you’ll be perceived and interpreted. (Ex. little old lady in tennis shoes as stereotypical preservationist). Know that first impressions exist and “play the game.”
• Winning a battle is inherently tied to how you present the issue/threat and yourself and preservation group to the public.
• You might be closer to agreement than you think. You might be pro-growth but a preservationist. The opposition may be neighborhood focused but not anti-development.
• Decide when and where you declare the opposition or decision-makers as the “enemy” and what are the implications?
• Know the difference between “persuade,” “good faith,” “negotiation,” and “litigation”
• Don’t be bullied by false arguments, heated debates or intimidated by authority figures or “outside experts.”
• Don’t assume anything or be naive.
• Try to avoid conspiracy theories.
• Know deadlines, how to get on agendas, and ultimately be invited to the table and become a “player” instead of being viewed as an obstacle.
• Recognize that historic buildings don’t stay “saved” as new threats are always looming.

• Don’t talk past each other. It goes back to not making assumptions or that they “will do the right thing.”
• Reject “done deal” arguments.
• Is there room for bargaining? Does your opponent need something else down the road that could be useful to your battle (particularly relevant for developers who always want more). Can you trade support?
• Consider a battle as a strategy rather than a fight.
• Keep the issue out in front of the public. Be tenacious and “in their face” (the squeaky wheel gets the oil).
• Know that battles often come down to the “character” or “quality” of an area – not just the loss of a building.
• Avoid crossing the line between playing the game and losing your integrity and preservation ethic.
• Know what you want to gain and the expectations. What are your short and long-term goals? There may be value of multiple outcomes.
• Find the “win-win” where you can appeal to the needs of the opposition, and at the same time, achieve the goal of saving the building.

Use the Tools and Rules to Your Own Advantage

• Know the rules that apply.
• Ask the right questions and the hard ones. Don’t assume the unstated. Be fair, but discriminating in what you choose to accept as the “truth” and “fact.”
• Is there a local preservation ordinance in place to protect the resource in controversy? If so, contact municipal officials charged with implementing the ordinance.
• Are special considerations needed, like a variance or rezoning? If so, a process will allow for public participation.
• Are federal or state permits needed to advance the project and, if so, what are they and is preservation for historic resources a consideration for permitting? Contact your state historic preservation officer, and legislative or congressional representative.
• Quote “scripture” to make your point. If an adopted master plan or comprehensive plan supports your position, bring it to the attention of the decision-makers. Be wary of the flip side.
• Fight capital with capital. Raise dollars through donations to fight the developers to hire attorneys, file court appeals or conduct independent feasibility or impact studies to prove your point.
• Investigate and use petitions, remonstration and referendum processes where applicable.
• Beat them at the grass roots. Use the power of numbers to pack public meetings, handout leaflets at supermarkets, write dozens of letters to the editor, organize a press conference, or make calls.
• Hire a professional. When up against a heavy hitter, recognize your limitations and bring in some help. Most communities have a political consultant nearby, someone who can develop a media campaign and understand how to get a floppy disk full of town voters with phone numbers. Some developers use hired guns; so should anti-development forces.

Recognize the Human Toll

• Know that “burnout” is likely, especially considering that most preservation battles take years, sometimes decades to settle. Advocacy and adversarial situations can wear the preservation “soul” out and be very emotional. Know that “burnout” is likely, especially considering that most preservation battles take years, sometimes decades to settle.
• Avoid burnout and loss of momentum by shifting roles and responsibilities. Over time, leaders will come and go, impacting your group’s enthusiasm, commitment and general effectiveness.
• Tag team members as group leaders and continually rotate members. Find your talent pools and plug into the needed roles (ex. graphic designer to help with the newsletter, fliers). Put team together and start by identifying the roles of who will do what in the process.
• Don’t become insulated and instead reach out to new people and ask for help. With the high turnover in any group, there will generally be a committed core group who will do the work.
• Know that personal lives will suffer. During battle, committed leaders will often let their personal life fall apart. Know that after battle members may need recovery period before taking on the next battle.
• Celebrate the “positives” of battles. As an unintended consequence, battles draw people together, crossing economic, age and cultural lines. People who never would have met otherwise often become lifelong friends.

Know When to Gamble & When to Fold

• Know what you can “live with” if a compromise or mitigation is the most likely outcome (ex. moving the building).
• At an impasse, sometimes you have to agree to disagree and move on.
• Know what battles to leave for another day and which ones to take on. If you negotiate, put it in terms of what it means to all parties.
• If you compromise, be prepared to explain to your constituents why you did it.
• Don’t assume that someone must win and someone must lose. When discussion reaches a stalemate, examine the interests behind people’s positions. Look for the next most-acceptable alternative.
• Know when to draw the line and make a controversial decision. Decide when to choose instead to take the safe road and avoid making an enemy.
• Pick your battle. Is the cause worth the fuss?
• Know that you can lose a battle but gain a process as a result. Try to get something out of the battle. Failures can result in measurements of success, like a new preservation ordinance, formation of new group, and support for the next “save.”
• Create a process for picking battles when more than one comes along and know that some battles will choose you.
• Be strategic in choosing a battle and why (ex. oldest building in town, significance, etc.). Do you choose battles that you have best chance of winning with broad public support? Develop criteria for intervention and stick to it.
• Reserve your energy and focus on the long-term problem. Chances are, the issue faced here will resurface in your community unless a long-term solution is put into place.
• Just because you're right, doesn't always mean you will win.

Make Politics Work for You

• Political decisions are often made behind the scenes and without benefit of public input. Know that this activity exists.
• Beware that politicians will say one thing and think another.
• Get out your vote and mobilize numbers. Use your power of numbers to influence political outcomes. The only thing that truly affects a politician is the number of votes they won't receive in the next election
• Become politically savvy and know who's friends with who, who funded who's campaign and investigate links.
• Contribute to political campaigns. In our current system, this is the only true leverage you have.
• Reward politicians with real awards or complimentary letters to editor (great for their vita's)
• Always invite politicians to meetings, rally’s, etc. even if they are not on your side.
• Even if you're not, enlist political active people into your cause.
• Figure out who is up for re-election and use elections and position papers. Ask for opinions of the candidates, keep track of their performance and voting records and distribute through your membership, newsletter, etc.
• Support the politician at low-cost fundraising events
• Organize groups of local leaders and/or grassroots preservationists to attend events with the politician.
• Meet (face-to-face) with your politicians at least twice a year.
• Look for opportunities and arrange a public/press event each year in which the politician participates.
• Develop relationships with the politician’s key staff.
• Avoid moralizing (“it is your duty, that’s why we elected you”).
• Know that people will do what’s good for them rather than what’s bad for them. More often, people will also take a risk to avoid something rather than taking a risk to gain something.

-Adapted from “Advocacy tools & Strategies,” Adrian Fine, National Trust for Historic Preservation Northeast Field Office