<Li> Various local governments consolidate to form a city . An example is Chesapeake, formed from the merger of the independent city of South Norfolk and Norfolk County . </Li> <P> Where the residents of an area of sufficient size wish to incorporate as a city, they must petition the Virginia state legislature to grant them a municipal charter . </P> <P> Virginia's independent cities were classified by the Virginia General Assembly in 1871 as cities of the first class and cities of the second class . The Virginia Constitution of 1902 included defined first - class cities as those having a population of 10,000 or more based upon the last census enumeration, while second - class cities were those that had a population of fewer than 10,000 . Cities which previously had been granted a city charter, but did not have the requisite population, had their status grandfathered in . Second - class cities did not have a court of record and were required to share the cost of that court with their adjacent county and also shared the cost for three constitutional officers of that court--generally, the clerk, commonwealth's attorney and sheriff--and those shared officers stood for election in both the city and the county . At least two constitutional officers--treasurer and commissioner of the revenue--were required to be elected solely by the residents of the city . The distinction between first - and second - class cities was ended with the Virginia Constitution of 1971 . But cities that were classified as second - class cities at the time of the adoption of the 1971 Virginia Constitution were authorized to continue sharing their court system and three constitutional officers with the adjacent county . As of 2003, 14 of Virginia's independent cities retain these features . </P> <P> Unlike Virginia's cities, and like municipalities in most other states, incorporated towns are municipalities that are within counties . Local government is thus divided between the town and the county . A town can be formed from any area with a defined boundary having a population of 1,000 or more . The method for forming towns is the same as for cities, petitioning the state legislature to grant a charter . As of 2014, there are 191 incorporated towns in Virginia . </P>

Difference between first and second class cities in virginia
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