Mayor Emanuel announced that the City of Chicago will make the Day for Change pilot a permanent fixture this year in its ongoing efforts to address homelessness. By doubling the program’s capacity, the city is seeking to reach more homeless individuals through a unique program that provides an opportunity to engage in day labor and wraparound services. The Day for Change pilot served twice as many people as it was intended to, and will now seek to serve at least 550 unique individuals by expanding the program’s reach to cover more areas of the city. Funded by the house sharing surcharge enacted last year by Mayor Emanuel, the pilot program was created to serve 100 individuals through a unique opportunity to earn a modest wage. Over the course of less than three months, the pilot has helped 225 individuals either homeless or panhandling to earn roughly $12,000-15,000 combined in wages. The program is operated through a city partnership with A Safe Haven Foundation, which operates two work vans to do daily work recruitment at the viaducts and underpasses, where a concentrated population of homeless and panhandlers reside. Program participants will be eligible to earn up to $600 annually, and will receive meals, transportation, behavioral health services, job preparedness training, healthcare screenings, hygiene care, and interim housing. A Day for Change, which began in September 2016, is modeled after a similar program in Albuquerque.