As a point of reference, Annapolis is an incorporated city. It has less then half the population of Columbia (40k) while its annual budget is about 6.5 times CA's budget.

The responsibility and power you would want the city, mayor, and council to have; and how those responsibilities and powers would be funded can't be afterthoughts - those questions are the fundamental thing that you would need to answer before making the case to incorporate as a city. I call it a "pipedream" (genuinely sorry if that comes off as dismissive) because I've never heard those aspects defined in any detail nor an explanation of how that would result in a better quality of life for residents. But, despite the lack of rigor, "becoming a city" is treated like a panacea that would solve all Columbia's problems... meanwhile people aren't taking the readily available actions that would improve the status quo: stay informed about CA and vote in village elections.