NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - In light of ongoing spats between communities and big retailers and the recent Supreme Court ruling allowing seizures of private property for commercial uses, a leading Catholic investment fund is promoting a strategy it hopes will reduce opposition to and increase profits at the mega chain stores.

It's a nine-point plan aimed at getting big box retailers to seriously consider such issues as environmental protection, historic preservation, town character and respect for indigenous lands when constructing new stores.

Among other things, it calls on companies to not use land taken as a result of eminent domain laws, consult with community members during site selection and maintain a transparent record posted on their Web site of the steps taken to ensure a new location will be a welcome addition, not source of resentment, in its host community.

"We're trying to call companies' attention to better risk management," said Julie Tanner, a spokeswoman for Christian Brothers Investment Services, a $4 billion fund catering to Catholic organizations, which published the guide along with Domini Social Investments, a $1.8 billion retail fund. "Our goal is to make sure the companies we invest in are the best they can be."

In June, the Supreme Court ruled that local governments could seize private property for use in commercial development.

Tanner said the guidelines, which have been sent to such retailers as Wal-Mart (Research), Lowe's (Research), Costco (Research), Home Depot (Research) and Target (Research), are less a list of demands and more a series of suggestions.

She also said the fund wouldn't sell the stock of companies that failed to comply but would rather engage in continued dialogue. "If we sell shares, we lose leverage," she said.

Yet one would think the big retailers are savvy enough to recognize the value of positive community relations on their own and would do everything short of losing money to maintain them.

"Retailers get it, they understand the value of being a good citizen," said Candace Corlett with WSL Strategic Retail, a consultancy.

But Tanner pointed to a community opposition for a planned for a Wal-Mart in Inglewood, Calif., a Costco in Lake Forest, Ill, and a Lowe's in Silicon Valley, as well as a number of embarrassing public relations flops in the report, as evidence that work remains.

"If companies really are paying attention, then I think the number of situations would be reduced," she said. "Obviously, there is some disconnect."

A spokesman for the National Retail Federation had no immediate comment.

For more on the Supreme Court decision on eminent domain, click here.