Part of an ethnically diverse area south of Chicago, the village of Matteson, Illinois (pop. 13,000), found that it had experienced retail redlining, whereby "class A" retailers had bypassed the area. Through a series of studies on the local economic profile, educational attainment, and new home construction, the village was able to identify more positive factors than site selectors appeared to be considering. To counter the retail sector’s perceptions, Matteson partnered with church and civic groups, area elected officials, and leaders of surrounding communities to promote the region’s "green power"--deriving not from the color of the residents’ skin but from the color of their money. Through letter writing campaigns, media outreach, and redevelopment of vacant big-box space, the community convinced several national retailers to locate there. Since then, those retailers have far exceeded their initial sales projections, and more new development is on its way.