Pueblo West is taking the first step to see if they can become a city.

There are around 30,000 people that live in the district. Right now, it's just a metro district, so there are limited services. The board agreed to pay a consultant to do a fiscal responsibility study at their meeting Tuesday night and see if the community can actually become a city or not.

“We’re not saying at this point that we necessarily want to go down the incorporation route; we simply want to understand what that looks like and financially what does that mean,” said Nina Vetter, the Pueblo West Metro district manager.

Vetter said this study will break down all the pros and cons of becoming a city. Some of the current challenges Pueblo West faces are accommodating the growing population, a decreasing residential assessment rate, as well as restraints from TABOR and trying to expand services without an increased mill levy.

"Being an incorporated city can provide some benefits in the terms of flexibility of the city and finances and what type of services you can provide that aren't necessarily contained within a specific service plan,” Vetter said. “If you are an incorporated city, you also have more control of what happens in your community. You’re very reliant as a district on others, particularly when it comes to planning.”

In Pueblo West’s case, they’re very reliant on Pueblo County.

“Pueblo County really does control a lot of what happens in our community, and we were very fortunate to have them as a great partner, but really when we’re looking to further our community and develop in a way that we want, it can be helpful to have a little bit more control moving forward,” Vetter said.

Voters would have to approve it if Pueblo West was to go this route. The study will take around six months to complete. The study is going to cost $75,000. The funding is coming from at least one grant from the Department of Local Affairs worth $25,000. The district is applying for a Siemens grant to help pay for it as well. That one is worth $20,000.