This article examines how a non-profit agency in Albany, New York mobilized federal resources to successfully challenge NIMBYism and local exclusionary zoning policies for a proposed housing development for homeless people. Specifically, the author argues that the agency’s aggressive position on housing discrimination along with their utilization of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s governance over Fair Housing Law enforcement and the administration of Stewart B. McKinny Homeless Assistance funding allowed them to overcome local zoning denials.