Medway Council is waiting to find out if the borough will be granted the much coveted city status.
A bid has been launched to create the city of Medway out of the adjoining towns of Rochester, Strood, Chatham, Gillingham and Rainham.
Rochester itself lost its city status in 1998 during the reorganisation of local government. The reorganisation made Medway Council a unitary authority, independent of Kent County Council, but a simple administrative error at the time meant Rochester was no longer classed as a city.
The only way the town or the borough can regain city status is for the Queen to grant the honour.
One town is due to be granted city status as part of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations in 2012. Towns across the UK are competing for this honour and the result is due to be announced in February.
Cllr Rodney Chambers, leader of Medway Council, said: “We now have four universities here in Medway providing education for 10,000 students. We have a further education college that has recently opened and we have embarked on a massive regeneration programme, which has enabled us to bring forward our infrastructure programme.
“We are in a difficult economic time, but I still believe that being granted city status would put us ahead of others in gaining inward investment.”
Medway has made two previously unsuccessful bids for city status, in 2000 and 2002.
Other towns competing for city status this time include Middlesbrough, Reading, Bolton, Swindon, Chelmsford, Stockport, Perth, Gateshead, Ballymena, Guildford, Southend-on-sea, Ipswich, Wrexham, Croydon and St Austell.