Downtown Merrill celebrated its 6th annual Chili Blast this year on Saturday, Sept. 30, featuring 14 cooks participating throughout the downtown area. More than 200 people enjoyed a beautiful fall day by walking around the downtown area and sampling the many different types of chili.
This year’s winners were: 1st place, Don and Dawn Swan from First Street Coffee Station; 2nd place, Kurt Wendt from Merrill Sheet Metal; and 3rd place, Bill Davis from the Checkered Churn. Organizers would like to thank all of the businesses that participated by hosting a chili cook, and all of the chili cooks who made the yummy pots of chili, and all of the people that stopped down to try them out and vote for their favorites.
The Downtown businesses will be donating a portion of the proceeds from the event to the River Bend Trail.