Saskatoon city council has voted to remove minimum off-street parking requirements for new developments.

The zoning bylaw amendment passed unanimously on Wednesday evening. It does not affect on-street parking rules. 

Previously, the amount of off-street parking required was based on the size of the building, the number of housing units and the use. Now, the developer, homeowner or business can decide how much parking to provide.

The change is part of a raft of bylaw amendments the city needed to make to qualify for money in the federal government's Housing Accelerator Fund, targeted at increasing the supply of affordable housing.

"We won't even notice it, but it will enable more housing to be built and for us to have vibrant neighbours and less wasted spaces… a bold move by council," Mayor Charlie Clark said at a public hearing at Saskatoon city council Wednesday evening. 

He said bringing down the building costs by removing parking requirements will help speed up new housing builds.

Jon Naylor was one of four speakers at the public hearing and was the only one who spoke against the by-law, saying it would punish people who rely on cars. 

"I'm concerned that if we under-build parking at administration's preferred response, it will punish residents by enacting stricter parking bylaws. We already have hospital workers who have trouble finding parking, and families who rely on cars," Naylor said.

Stakeholders welcomed the move, saying the prior minimum parking requirements increased the total cost of development, contributing to higher rents.