Pueblo County’s population growth lags behind other Colorado counties

Two counties along the Front Range, Douglas and El Paso counties, have bragging rights for some of the biggest growth spurts in the state. But Pueblo County has been left in the dust.

Douglas County’s population has increased by more than 125,000 people since 2000. In El Paso County, it’s gone up by more than 135,000 people. Pueblo County has seen an increase of about 20,000 people in that time.

Families, like the Musso’s, have called Pueblo County home for five generations.

“My grandfather come here for, I guess, the land of opportunity like everybody else comes here,” said Carl Musso, whose grandfather homesteaded land in eastern Pueblo County around the turn of the 20th century.

Carl Musso’s daughter, Lisa Musso, said she’s never envisioned herself living anywhere else.

“It’s my stomping grounds. I’m a farmer’s daughter. I’m proud to be a farmer’s daughter,” Lisa Musso said.

Carl Musso recalls the rich Italian heritage that was evident in Pueblo decades ago. “This was little Italy at one time. There were a lot of Sicilian people,” he said.

But Carl Musso knows the economy has changed that.

“The steel mill was the big thing and then it kind of went down. And if you didn’t have something to fall back on, you moved some place where you could find a job,” Carl Musso said.

A job brought Trevor Case to work in western Pueblo County. The growing marijuana industry proved a worthwhile reason to pack up his life in Texas and move to Colorado with his wife and two kids.

“The cost of living is really manageable here so that’s why we chose Pueblo as our base,” Case said.

A few weeks ago, Case took a starting position at Marisol Therapeutics in Pueblo West, checking IDs as customers walk through the door. Case said the view of the mountains, outdoor recreation and the marijuana industry all brought him to Pueblo.

“I think I am one of a lot of people that have moved here for that reason,” Case said.

Don Vest, social economic analyst for the city of Pueblo, told KRDO NewsChannel 13 he remembers a time when people were leaving Pueblo because they couldn’t find a job. In the 1970s and ’80s, thousands of people were laid off at the Pueblo Chemical Depot and the CF&I Steel Mill.

“At one time, Pueblo had almost a 20 percent unemployment rate,” Vest said.

While that’s no longer the case, Vest said the community needs more jobs to attract newcomers.

“Population growth is largely dependent upon employment opportunities,” Vest said.

A lack of jobs may have slowed down growth in the Steel City, but KRDO NewsChannel 13 found many families choose to live in Pueblo to support what could become the county’s two most famous crops — Pueblo chiles and marijuana.

“This is our home now. We’re setting our roots here and we’re staying here,” Case said.

Pueblo County’s population is expected to surpass 200,000 people by 2040, according to Vest.