NSW councils who build and approve more homes will be rewarded with new parks, sporting facilities and upgraded footpaths.

Under a $200 million grant program set to be announced by the state government on Wednesday, up to 43 councils will be given new housing targets and incentivised to meet them through new funding arrangements.

NSW Premier Chris Minns says the program will encourage councils to spend, rather than sit on the more than $3 billion in contributions collected for local infrastructure.

“The parts of Sydney which drive more development will receive more funding for schools, hospitals and roads,” he will say at a CEDA State of the State address in Sydney on Wednesday. 

“An extra $200 million – to fund the green space, the footpaths, the parks and the local streets that build good communities.

“In other words, meeting and beating the housing targets will automatically translate to greater funding support.”

Councils who approve more homes and meet their housing targets will be eligible for a greater portion of the funding, with community benefits ranging more parks to sporting facilities and maintenance of local streets and footpaths.

Funds will not be available if key milestones are not reached.

Councils’ planning performance will be judged and compared under a soon-to-be published Council League Table.

The grant scheme comes on top of a $520 million state government spend on infrastructure around priority train stations across Sydney to integrate housing with existing public transport networks.

One of the government’s signature housing policies includes the blanket rezoning around eight metro and train stations and 37 existing transport hubs and town centres, although one council is fighting the plan in court.

This post was originally published on Michael West.