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The best place in Denver to get a costume for Halloween — or any other day of the year | Opinion

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:09 GMT

Editor’s note: This is part of The Know’s series, Staff Favorites. Each week, we offer our opinions on the best that Colorado has to offer for dining, shopping, entertainment, outdoor activities and more. (We’ll also let you in on some hidden gems).Walking into the Wizard’s Chest on Broadway for the first time feels like stepping into a movie studio. There’s a whole corner dedicated to professional-grade makeup. A tree with every shade of wig nearly touches the ceiling. And rows and rows of costumes – from princesses to killer clowns, anime characters and even a Cholula hot sauce outfit – line the walls. Employees at the Wizard's Chest are all dressed in Halloween costumes leading up to the holiday. (Photo by Lily O'Neill, The Denver Post)The interior's design is inspired by Middle-Earth, the setting of J.R.R. Tolkien’s tales of "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of The Rings." (Photo by Lily O'Neill, The Denver Post)One corner of the Wizard's Chest is dedicated to professional-grade m...

Construction surge, slow population growth help Colorado made a dent in its housing shortfall

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:09 GMT

A surge in apartment and home construction in metro Denver combined with slower population growth to chip away at the state’s housing deficit during the pandemic, according to a report from Up for Growth, an advocacy group seeking to improve housing affordability through more residential construction.Up for Growth, in its first annual report on the nation’s housing shortfall, estimated that Colorado faced a deficit of 127,000 housing units back in 2019, which was the second most severe shortfall in percentage terms of any state after California.By the end of 2021, that underproduction had fallen to 101,141 units, which ranked eighth worst in terms of its severity. Nearly half of the state’s housing shortfall, or about 49,581 homes, was concentrated in metro Denver.“Colorado is an interesting place in that you haven’t seen the mass exodus seen in places like New York, Washington, D.C., or certainly California. You have also seen an increase in homebuildi...

8 suspects caught on camera stealing thousands of dollars in merchandise from shoe store 

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:09 GMT

Another business has fallen victim to a flash mob-style robbery, with eight suspects targeting a local shoe store in the latest case of commercial theft in Southern California. Surveillance footage shows at least five of the thieves walking calmly around the WSS store in Van Nuys around 9 p.m. Sunday night, casually stealing five to six thousand dollars worth of clothes and shoes, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. Authorities later confirmed that a total of eight suspects -- five men and three women -- carried out the robbery.Some of the suspects were seen exiting the store, located in the 7900 block of Sepulveda Boulevard, with merchandise stuffed in plastic bags; others just took items and walked out. Thieves seen walking out with thousands of dollars in merchandise from a Van Nuys shoe store on Oct. 22, 2023. (OnScene TV)Thieves seen walking out with thousands of dollars in merchandise from a Van Nuys shoe store on Oct. 22, 2023. (OnScene TV)Thieves seen walking out...

Single family residence sells for $1.6 million in Pleasanton

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:09 GMT

3214 Monmouth Court – Google Street ViewA house located in the 3200 block of Monmouth Court in Pleasanton has new owners. The 1,701-square-foot property, built in 1969, was sold on Sept. 7, 2023, for $1,610,000, or $947 per square foot. This single-story home offers a spacious layout with four bedrooms and two baths. On the exterior, the home features wood shake roofing / shingles. Inside, there is a fireplace. The property is equipped with forced air heating and central A/C. In addition, the home comes with a two-car garage, allowing for convenient vehicle storage and additional storage space.These nearby houses have also recently changed hands:A 3,094-square-foot home on the 4000 block of Suffolk Way in Pleasanton sold in June 2023, for $1,755,000, a price per square foot of $567. The home has 6 bedrooms and 4 bathrooms.In August 2023, a 1,941-square-foot home on Picadilly Court in Pleasanton sold for $1,650,000, a price per square foot of $850. The home has 3 bedrooms and 3 bathr...

How Steve Kerr is changing Warriors practices to rectify “failed” season

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:09 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — Steve Kerr had more time than usual to think. The Warriors had been eliminated from the playoffs before the NBA Finals for the first time in his tenure and those extra weeks gave Kerr a chance to assess how a championship team’s title defense season turned so sour.Kerr blamed himself.“I will say that I feel like I failed last year in connecting the group,” Kerr said to this news organization in July. “I have taken a lot of time this summer to think about last year, things I could have and should have done differently. I really believe that sometimes losing sort of forces you to reassess and reevaluate. And I’m excited about coming back next year with a renewed focus and energy and spirit from the entire group. That starts with me and I can’t wait.”Team leaders started to change habits months before training camp even began. Steph Curry and Chris Paul organized offseason minicamps and team dinners to get the entire team acquainted — something the War...

Why are eggs so expensive and which are best? Cracking the code on carton labels

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:09 GMT

If eggs are a regular staple in your household, you’ve probably noticed that the price of a dozen eggs appears to have doubled in the last year or so. An outbreak of avian influenza – also known as bird flu – killed millions of egg-laying chickens nationwide, leading to a serious egg shortage. While grocery stores are no longer out of eggs, the higher prices remain.The cost of a dozen grade-A eggs at a typical grocery store in Southern California can range from $3.00 to a whopping $10.00. Considering eggs cost more than ever, are the more expensive eggs worth it? What do the labels on the egg carton even mean? There are common misconceptions about egg labeling, so let’s crack the code to the meaning of common egg carton labels.Egg GradingEggs are graded on a scale of AA, A or B. Eggs are graded on appearance and the firmness of the white with AA being the highest quality. Typically, supermarket eggs are graded A, which is fine for baking and cooking.Cage-freeWhile cage-free may soun...

How the California Legislature addressed homelessness this year

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:09 GMT

Although much of the work to address California’s homelessness crisis takes place at the local level, legislators in Sacramento sought to address the crisis this past year as well.According to local 2023 Point in Time Counts, homelessness grew 9% in 2022 in Los Angeles County, 12% in Riverside County, and 26% in San Bernardino County. Orange County counts its unhoused homeless residents every other year, but the number of homeless people in Orange County shelters rose 12% in 2023.This year, lawmakers in Sacramento introduced bills to make it easier to build shelters, study what’s killing homeless Californians and improve mental health services in the state.Gov. Gavin Newsom had until Oct. 14 to decide the fate of bills passed by the Legislature. Here’s how some of those targeting the homelessness crisis fared:Assembly Bill 42Status: Signed by Newsom on Oct. 10.About the bill: AB 42, sponsored by Assemblymember James Ramos, D-Highland, temporarily stops — until January 2027 — local g...

Proposed tax credit could help California landscapers transition to electric leaf blowers, lawn mowers

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:09 GMT

When Sana Sirodan and her team launched Greenplace landscaping services out of Costa Mesa earlier this year after immigrating from Ukraine due to the war, she said they opted for all-electric equipment from the start.They knew their new home state of California was pivoting away from polluting leaf blowers, lawn mowers and other gear with engines powered by pricey gasoline or diesel, Sirodan said. Electric tools also are quieter, a bit easier to operate and less expensive over time. And Greenplace now pitches their all-electric fleet of tools as an “eco-friendly” selling point for customers throughout Orange and Los Angeles counties.But for established landscape businesses, such as Marques Blackman’s Simple Lawns Services in San Bernardino, which have already invested hundreds or thousands of dollars in more powerful gas-fueled tools, coming up with the capital to switch to electric equipment is no small feat.Commercial-grade electric-powered gear can cost anywhere from 15% to 300% ...

23,000 people attend In-N-Out’s 75th anniversary festival in Southern California

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:09 GMT

Fast food and racing car fans descended on Pomona on Sunday, Oct. 22, for a 12-hour festival marking the 75th anniversary of In-N-Out Burger.It took place at the In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip, which is on the grounds of the Fairplex. About 23,000 tickets sold out in advance, according to Denny Warnick, chief operating officer of the company.Cars are on show at the In-N-Out Burger 75th anniversary festival in Pomona on Sunday, Oct. 22, 2023. (Photo by Fielding Buck, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)A giant Double-Double stands by the entrance of the In-N-Out Burger Museum, an attraction at the fast food chain’s 75th anniversary festival in Pomona on Sunday, Oct. 22, 2023. (Photo by Fielding Buck, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)Jennifer Soriano and Jonathan Mariano pose with a giant Double-Double and prop french fries at In-N-Out Burger’s 75th anniversary celebration, Sunday, Oct. 22, 2023 in Pomona. (Photo by Fielding Buck, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)In-N-Out Burger associates staf...

There’s more to M&M’s than meets the mouth

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:28:09 GMT

Need I even mention the name of this month’s major holiday? Not hardly, when 70% of Americans are expected to spend an estimated $12 billion this year on Halloween costumes, decorations and candy – big business for the U.S. economy.Yet this spooky-fun event had its beginnings 2,000 years ago when the Celtic New Year was celebrated at summer’s end with bonfires and people wore costumes to ward off evil spirits.M&M’s are one of the most popular candy treats given out for Halloween. The sugar-coated goodies even have their own special recognition – Oct. 13 was National M&M Day. Introduced in 1941, M&M’s are sold in over 100 countries. The original colors were red, brown and yellow with the logo lettering in black, which was changed to white in 1954.Over the years, colors have come and gone and returned again by popular demand. Orange, for instance, debuted in 1976, was discontinued in 2006 and returned in 2010. A special blue M&M was introduced to promote “The Blues Bro...