Check out six upcoming events in Plano.

Chili Cookoff and Polar Plunge
Attendees can enjoy a cool dip in the Texas Pool while tasting chili or entering their own dish in the cooking contest. Cookoff contest prizes will be awarded for best regular chili, best exotic chili, judge’s choice and crowd choice, and all proceeds will go toward the Texas Pool Foundation.

• Feb. 28, 1-3 p.m.
• $35 (cookoff entry), $10 (general admission)
• The Texas Pool, 901 Springbrook Drive, Plano

• March 21, 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
• Free (admission)
• Haggard Park, 901 E. 15th St., Plano

The Tox is set to open a location in Plano’s Preston Park Village, according to onsite signage.

What they will offer: The Tox will offer body sculpting and sculpting facials. Body sculpting incorporates techniques that increase metabolic rate, removes excess toxins and assists with water retention, the company website states.

• 1900 Preston Road, Ste. 228, Plano

Three Republican candidates will run for Texas House District 70 during the March 3 primary election.

What you need to know: Candidates that can be found on the March 3 ballot in the Republican primary race for Texas House of Representatives District 70 include:

• George Flint
• Jack Ryan Gallagher
• Michael Hewitt

During an arctic blast last month, the Texas power grid remained stable throughout the storm and the state came away largely unscathed. The Lone Star State has not seen widespread blackouts since February 2021, when millions of Texans lost power and nearly 250 people died.

The response: In Uri’s wake, state lawmakers and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas made changes to restructure ERCOT’s governing board, mandate earlier public alerts during tight grid conditions and require that energy providers “weatherize” their facilities to withstand extremely hot or cold temperatures.

Roughly 40,000 megawatts of power—enough to serve about 10 million residential customers—have been added to the grid since 2021 and the state’s energy supply has become more diverse.

Looking ahead: State leaders have expressed confidence that the grid would hold up during “a storm similar to Uri.” Yet some energy analysts caution that rapidly rising electric demand, driven by the construction of new data centers throughout Texas, means challenges may still lie ahead.