Melbourne is a "miserable, rainy and disappointing" city, according to a damning assessment by NSW premier Mike Baird.

Mr Baird - who was in Melbourne to watch his home side play in the State of Origin Rugby League clash between Queensland and NSW at the MCG - made the comment after Melbourne Airport vetoed a provocative NSW Government billboard.

Mike Baird took a dim view of Melbourne ... So Daniel Andrews offered him a decent coffee. Credit:Louise Kennerley

In a clear jab at the recent decision by the Andrews government to dump the East West Link contact, the billboard would have declared: "NSW. We actually build infrastructure. Come and invest where things get done."

It follows growing alarm in the business sector about what some see as a lack of major projects in the short and medium term, with NSW held up as an example of a state proactivity pursuing major events and business opportunities.