Seattle residents voted Tuesday to limit growth with a lid on the height of new downtown buildings, while voters rejected tax overhauls in Pennsylvania and Oregon.
Pittsburgh Mayor Sophie Masloff won the Democratic primary and practically guaranteed herself victory in November.In Tucson, Ariz., voters reversed themselves and approved a school bond package totaling $398 million - 10 times the amount of a similar measure that was rejected last year.
Seattle residents also voted on the future, and agreed that it doesn't lie 80 stories above Puget Sound. The initiative they approved restricts the density and height of downtown buildings for the next 10 years while a long-range development plan is adopted.
The initiative's most visible impact will be to limit the height of new buildings to 450 feet, about 38 stories. Seattle now has the tallest downtown on the West Coast, crowned by the 76-story Columbia Center.
With 98 percent of precincts reporting, the vote was 42,007 in favor of the measure and 25,958 against, or 62-to-38 percent. A simple majority was needed.
While most of Tuesday's voting was on growth and money issues, several cities held mayoral primaries.
In Pittsburgh, the 71-year-old Masloff, who is known for her folksy touch, beat four rivals for the Democratic nomination.