From Blight to Bright Future: How Your Brownfield Success Story Can Support Project Momentum

Brownfield sites—vacant or underutilized properties with potential contamination—often conjure images of blight and decay. While the journey from a polluted plot of land to a vibrant, productive space is a monumental undertaking, the story of this transformation is often left untold. This is a missed opportunity.

Sharing your brownfield success stories isn’t just a feel-good exercise; it’s a powerful tool that can secure future funding, build community support, and attract new partners. By telling your story, you make sure it resonates with the people who matter most and show the good work you are doing to your community, elected officials, and grant-issuing agencies.

Why Sharing Your Story Matters

The work of brownfield redevelopment can take years, even decades. Because of this long timeline, it’s crucial to share progress along the way, not just at the finish line. Celebrating small wins and milestones keeps momentum going and keeps your project top of mind.

A brownfield success story can be anything from a groundbreaking celebration to an innovative cleanup technique used in remediation. For instance, the revitalization of a former railyard in Los Angeles transformed a polluted site into the Rio de Los Angeles State Park. Not only did this project provide green space for the community, but it also saw the return of the endangered Least Bell’s Vireo, a unique and compelling success story that garnered attention in the Los Angeles Times. Similarly, a bioremediation pilot study on a heavily contaminated parcel of the same site, using native plants and fungi to clean up petroleum, was a unique success that caught the eye of The Guardian.

These examples show that success doesn’t have to be a ribbon-cutting ceremony. It can be the return of wildlife, the success of an innovative pilot study, community engagement events, or even a completed assessment phase. The key is to find the unique angle in your project and share it.

Tailoring Your Message to Different Audiences

When you’re ready to share your story, you need to think about who you’re talking to and what they care about. Different audiences have different motivations, and a one-size-fits-all message won’t be effective. Here are some audiences to consider:

• Granting Agencies: These organizations want to see that their funding is being put to good use. They love tangible results, like statistics, numbers, photos, and quotes. Invite them to groundbreakings and ribbon-cutting celebrations. If you’re an EPA grantee, be sure to input your data into the Assessment, Cleanup, and Redevelopment Exchange System (ACRES). This helps the EPA showcase the program’s success to Congress, which in turn helps secure future funding.
• Elected Officials: Elected leaders want to leave a positive legacy for their community. Focus on metrics that matter to them, such as job creation, increased tax revenue, and improved quality of life. Involve them in your brownfield projects; they’ll want to take part in the success and share it with their constituents. A great example of this is the Community Housing Development Corporation in Richmond, California, which brought
  together a wide array of elected officials for a groundbreaking celebration, demonstrating widespread support for their affordable housing project on a former brownfield site.
• Residents: Residents want to see how your project will benefit them directly. Focus on improvements like cleanup efforts, creating a sense of place, and enhancing quality of life. Sharing renderings of what the final project will look like can help them visualize the future and get excited about what’s to come. The transformation of a shuttered paint factory in Emeryville, California, into a beautiful park and housing development is a great example of a project that directly improved the community.
• Property Owners: While there’s overlap with residents, property owners have specific concerns. They want to know that their property values will increase and their investments will be protected. Address any fears they might have about brownfield reuse leading to enforcement actions by educating them on the process. When property owners are on board, they become powerful advocates for your project.
• Investors: Investors are motivated by the fear of missing out (FOMO). They want to get in on the ground floor of a successful, up-and-coming area. Illustrating past successes can give them the confidence they need to invest in your project. Niagara County, New York, for example, uses a story map on its website to showcase completed brownfield projects before highlighting new sites available for development. This helps investors see the potential and understand the momentum building in the region.

Choosing the Right Platform

Once you’ve defined your message and audience, you need to decide how to share it. There are three main types of media you can use, each with its own pros and cons.

• Owned Media: This is content you have full creative control over, such as your website, newsletters, and social media. You can share smaller, more frequent stories here to maintain momentum. You can also leverage your partners by tagging them in posts and asking them to share your content, expanding your reach at no cost. Video is a particularly powerful tool for owned media, as it allows you to tell a comprehensive story with both visuals and quotes.
• Earned Media: This is content created by journalists, like news articles and reports. While you have less control, earned media is often seen as more credible. You can communicate with journalists through media alerts for events, press releases for major announcements, and pitches for unique, feature-style stories. Given the reduced budgets of many newsrooms, journalists often rely on these materials to write their stories, so a well-crafted press release can go a long way.
• Paid Media: This includes advertisements and sponsored content. While it can reach the largest audience, it comes with a cost. Paid media should be reserved for specific instances, such as attracting investors or getting your marketing materials in front of a very targeted audience. It’s often not necessary when you can leverage the power of owned and earned media to amplify your message.

Think of these media types as a hierarchy. Start with your owned platforms, then use earned media to reach a broader audience. Hosting an event is the next step up, and paid advertising is at the top, reserved for when you need to make a significant, targeted push. By strategically using these tools, you can ensure your brownfield success story is heard, understood, and celebrated by everyone who needs to hear it.

Want to Learn More?

Watch the recent CCLR/NJIT webinar “From Brownfield to Bright Future: Telling Your Brownfield Success Story” on Youtube, and review the slides here.

Ready to Tell Your Story?

Now that you know the why and the how, it’s time to find the right people to help you. Look within your community and organization for individuals who have a passion for storytelling. They can help you craft a compelling narrative that will not only celebrate your achievements but also lay the groundwork for a brighter future. If you need assistance sharing your success story, reach out to Lauren Ghazikhanian to see how CCLR can help.

What’s the one small win you could share today to start your journey of storytelling?