West Kelowna has begun the process of changing its designation from district to city.

Photo: Castanet Staff - File Photo

Council Tuesday agreed to begin the process of seeking provincial government approval by first getting the go-ahead from its own citizens.

That will come in the form of an Alternative Approval Process request.

A question will be crafted and presented to council. Once the question is approved it would be posed to the electorate who would have 30 days in which to register a negative response to the question.

If less than 10 per cent of eligible voters disagree with the notion of becoming a city the district would then contact the Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development with their request.

The entire process could take up to nine months to complete if the voters say yes.

The idea first came to light in September of last year when Minister Coralee Oakes indicated the province would be willing to consider the reclassification.

Voters on the westside initially voted yes to become a stand-alone municipality in June of 2007.

The province gave the community the name Westside District Municipality a month later before the electorate voted for West Kelowna a year later.