Traveling Ladders is one of the businesses participating in this weekend's Fishing for Downtown Dollars event, in conjunction with the Brown Trout Festival.

ALPENA — The Alpena Downtown Development Authority will again offer the Fishing for Downtown Dollars event during this year’s Brown Trout Festival. The Fishing for Downtown Dollars event will run from Friday to Saturday, as the Brown Trout Festival kicks off. Community members can come “catch” Downtown Dollars while participating businesses are open. To participate, you can stop in to one of the businesses and draw a “fish” out of a fishbowl for a chance to win one of the following: One ($50) Big Brownie, four ($25) Walleye, 25 ($10) Salmon, and 35 ($5) Perch.

Altogether, that is over $500 of winning fish that will be in the fishbowls located in the downtown businesses. Though there are many winning fish that will be redeemable for Downtown Dollars, there will also be a mix of “Rainbow Trout” that won’t be worth anything and will need to be thrown back into the fishbowl. The winning catches are redeemable at the Downtown Development Authority office at 124 E. Chisholm St. in Downtown Alpena.

This event is fun for everyone who comes to the downtown area next weekend, and a great way to win some money that you can spend at the local businesses.

“This event allows people to connect the Brown Trout Festival at the marina with the rest of Downtown Alpena and make it a truly all-encompassing event for the area,” said Downtown Development Authority Marketing and Outreach Coordinator Kady Gehrke. “It is always exciting to see how much support the community gives to the festival and how much fun everyone has!”

The DDA is excited to share this event with the community to help envelope the Downtown Area into the Brown Trout Festival.

Participating businesses in the Fishing for Downtown Dollars event include: Thunder Bay Arts Gallery, Olivet Book and Gift, The Bluebird Boutique, Traveling Ladders, Bolenz Jewelry, Chippewa Valley Leatherworks, Regalo Luxury Gifts, Myers Fashions Etc., Thunder Bay Winery, The Rabbit Hole, Holiday Inn Express, Colburn Outfitters, The Local Basket Case, Emery Enterprises, Sweet Baby James, The Style Wherehouse, Rusty Petunias Marketplace, and Parallel 45 Books & Gifts.

For more information, visit the Facebook event page or contact Kady Gehrke at kegehrke@mtu.edu.