Ok.
First of all spartacus, it's Berand, thank you. ; )
Secondly, I was quick, so I thought, to point out that this project might require outsized resources. This apparent self-deprication was designed to squash off-hand dismissals, like your own, but apparently, that was a fail.
Third, I would agree that the current city depiction is largely fluff and not particularly useful.
I would reiterate, however, that it would be both very useful, and very appealing to players to have some depiction of status in the game.
For instance, A Presidential Complex with:
A DOD, that could show how many countries were conqured(sure that may be clear from Empire size, but some may have been bought, or some let go at some point), how many wars fought, how many wars won/lost.
A Treasury, that could show (Empire)GDP, budget breakdowns per department, and the economic trends of the empire.
An Interior department that could depict population trends, social welfare, and the like.
Currently, I have seen folks amass scores from each world on Population, War Assets, Productivity per capita, etc. It seems folks do this on their own, and when they have the time. It also seems to me, that other folks really appreciate it when this is done. I know for myself, it gave a quick overview as to who is really experienced/active in playing the game, and what their play styles may be, which in turn, is a big help in assessing their advice here on the boards, and to see what they think is important for doing well at the game.
Now, wouldn't it be nice if the game did that for us, in a pleasing and gratifying way for all the players?
Sure, there may be other priorities, but I think most of us would appreciate this, quite a bit.
B.
PS. I still want an Imperial Palace, but..thats negotiable.