Pueblo West board hears proposed 2026 budget and a plan to raise water bills 15%

Pueblo West Metropolitan District board members spent much of their Nov. 10 meeting reviewing staff changes to the proposed 2026 budget and hearing a separate public rate hearing in which utilities staff proposed a 15% increase to water charges and a 5% wastewater increase. The proposed water changes would include a new fourth consumption tier and higher connection fees; staff said the package would generate roughly $3 million in additional revenue and called for an effective date of Jan. 1.

Finance director Karen Cordova told the board staff corrected an administrative error that had swapped two salary line items and then outlined $36,098 in additional general-fund expenditures tied to capital-policy implementation, advertising and a position swap between a stormwater inspector and a project manager. Cordova said the utilities department asked staff to add connection-fee revenue that had not been captured in the initial draft: "[W]e increase the water fund by…