Denver spreads further out onto the Plains. Thanks to Democrat policy, Xcel is back for more of your money. And, because it's Friday, a gluten free starter.
Small towns near Denver are filling in, but Denver isn’t emptying out per se.
A quote from the article linked below:
"'“They’ve been putting in a lot of housing,' [state demographer Elizabeth] Garner said. 'A lot of the metro area has already been built. Keenesburg is a great location on a transportation corridor. It’s lower cost.'”
As someone who regularly passes Keenesburg can attest to: they are indeed building a lot in Keenesburg.
Interestingly, I note that they're starting to build out even further East. I guess (according to the article below), this is something of a pattern here. See the attached screenshot for a couple of notables on my trips back to the Front Range.)
As the article also says, and this should surprise no one, it's cheaper to live further away and commute in.
One thing not mentioned in the article that I have personal experience with (the couple next door is an example) are people with remote jobs moving to small towns, and for the same reason as above (although perhaps some desire to return to a small town like they grew up in tossed in for good measure).
Regardless of the drivers, one thing that I think I find concerning about this, beyond the possible change to the politics of an area, is the water.
If we're adding people to the periphery of Denver but not removing people from Denver to do it (and that seems to be the pattern here--check some of the graphics), where are we going to find the water to do It? I suppose some will come from the retirement of the farmland that now grows houses, but I question if that'll be enough.
If you're thinking they'll squeeze farmers further and further out to help meet the demand, you and I are thinking alike.
https://coloradosun.com/2023/05/18/census-colorados-smaller-communities-are-growing-while-large-cities-level-off/
Your opportunity to tell the PUC what you think about Xcel's latest request for money (Oh, and what spurred it you ask? Democrat policy).
Xcel Energy is back at the PUC asking for money to cover costs for transmission lines, part of its "Power Pathway" project.
More details are in the first link below, but the upshot is that, in order to meet state-mandated emissions targets, Xcel has chosen to locate renewables on the Plains and is now going to have to build new and bolster existing lines to bring that power to the Front Range.
So, they've chosen to come back to the PUC to ask for more of your money. According to the article linked second below, Xcel's request will add about $7.33 to your residential Xcel bill (and about $10 to a small commercial one).
Hey, remember when the Democrats said that they were "laser focused" on affordability in this state? Yeah, we all had a laugh at that. I mean, their policy is driving Xcel to do things like this and it's resulting in higher rates.
Well, they're not going to raise my rates without some feedback from me. The third link below is how you can sign up to offer your comments to the PUC on the latest ask.
I hope you join me in attending one of the meetings and reminding everyone that the increased cost comes from Democrat state mandates and that Xcel should by rights be bearing some of this cost (instead of following their usual playbook of shifting the burden to us because it's one of the few profit centers they have).
https://www.coloradospowerpathway.com/project-description/
https://denvergazette.com/news/environment/puc-wants-to-hear-from-xcel-customers-on-proposed-rate-hike/article_853e35cc-f9b0-11ed-89a3-172ef42e8da9.html
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1BkOReL6W49rbnOD3C92jLqrXuqhUqHvL/view
***Related
What if the rural parts of the state don't want to play host to renewables?
https://www.ksut.org/news/2023-05-22/a-community-in-san-miguel-county-unites-against-a-proposed-solar-farm
Branching out into sourdough starters for other things ....
Another week down, another Friday, and you know what that means: something for fun and not related to politics!
Since getting a rye/bread flour sourdough starter going, I have branched out. I started with my base starter and moved it over to both pure rye and pure bread flour. I've got some of each kind dried and saved. Want a pure rye sourdough loaf? I got you. What pain levain? I got you. Want starter for a plain bread flour loaf? Yep.
It was only a matter of time before I went gluten free. I did some reading and bought some gluten free flour and set to work.
I chose Bob's Red Mill (product is widely available and the method was what I know works for regular flour), but you can do same with any number of other gluten free flours. Just google the term "gluten free starter" and you'll get all the options you could crave.
I have been regularly feeding it and building it up well past the point at which it started getting active to really let the balance of bugs come to equilibrium and to let the full flavor develop. It's fully mature and ready to dry some out (which I'll let sit a bit and do a test revival).
I thought you might be interested in seeing it, a picture of it in the jar is attached.
Some interesting things I was thinking over. If you know about any of the below with regard to gluten free starters please feel free to chime in!
--the starter definitely looked and "moved" differently than a bread flour starter, likely because there is no gluten for structure in gluten free flour (the structure comes from things like Xanthan gum)
--Even at that, however, it still smelled like a regular starter and tasted about as sharp.
--I wonder whether this starter will "sit" the same as a regular one. I.e. regular starter starts out mainly yeasty and not as sour developing more bacteria and more sour taste as you go from day 1 to day 3. Also regular starter will get soupier by day 3 as the structure of the gluten breaks down. Will gluten free follow suit? If so, will it take 3 days? Less time? More?
--I have a feeling this will be more a flavorant for gluten free breads than anything else. I mean, without the gluen, it's hard to get structure and a slow-raising full sourdough bread made gluten free seems doubtful. Flavorant or no, I think it'll be nice to have on hand, and it gives me something to do so I stay out of the bars.
That's it for today. Have a good end to the workweek!