Multi-million pound bids have been lodged to kick-start two major Norwich developments of hundreds of homes.
Schemes for new homes in Anglia Square and at the Deal Ground, on the edge of the city centre, are in the pipeline.
But council bosses believe a government pot of cash could be key to making them happen.
Norwich City Council is asking for £10m for each site to help put in place the costly infrastructure, such as new access roads, which would then enable developers to focus on getting the homes built.
The money would come from the Homes Infrastructure Fund, with the Homes and Communities Agency having made up to £2.3bn available to help sites which are being held back because the cost of putting in infrastructure and building the homes is too great.
The Deal Ground, near Trowse, is one of the sites which the council believes could benefit from such a cash injection.
In 2013, Serruys Property Company was given outline permission for up to 670 homes at the Deal Ground site, but work has yet to start on the £110m scheme.
But the site is the biggest undeveloped brownfield site in the city and the council hopes if the access roads to the site can be sorted, then the developer will be able to get on and build the homes.
At Anglia Square, Weston Homes and Columbia Threadneedle have been drawing up plans which would see a revamp and up to 1,350 homes.
However, the city council is keen that a percentage of those homes are social housing and hopes that will become viable with the aid of the £10m boost.
Alan Waters, leader of Norwich City Council, said: 'We want to see that area regenerated. People must be fed up looking at what is, in parts, a derelict site.
'But to get it moving, the Homes Infrastructure Fund money is really important in terms of the scheme's viability, but also in getting some council housing as part of the development.
'Given the scale of the site and the opportunities there, it would be transformational and help with the housing growth that we need.'
He said the Deal Ground was a 'very complex' site, but said: 'If we can get that off the ground, then it's a new community and that would help the pressures on Norwich in terms of house prices. 'The population is growing and both of those sites would be important contributors to helping with that.'
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