In Scottsdale and two neighboring communities, voters approved a plan Tuesday to use public financing to redevelop a rundown mall to include a new arena for the NHL's Phoenix Coyotes.

And in San Antonio, voters handily approved a new arena for the NBA champion Spurs.

Fountain Hills, another city that is part of the stadium district created for the arena, also approved the plan.

The Coyotes are the last of Arizona's four major professional franchises to seek public help to build a new arena. They currently play in 16,210-seat America West Arena, where they are losing up to $10 million a year because the co-tenant Phoenix Suns won't share concession revenues.

City of Phoenix money went into America West, and Maricopa County taxpayers paid most of the cost of Bank One Ballpark, built for the Arizona Diamondbacks. But when the Arizona Cardinals asked voters in nearby Mesa to help them build a domed stadium as part of a $1.8 billion commercial project six months ago, they were rejected.

In Bexar County, Texas, residents were voting 60-40 in favor of increasing hotel and rental car taxes to help fund a $175 million basketball arena for the Spurs, who currently play in the 6-year-old Alamodome.

The Spurs pledged $28.5 million toward the arena's construction. The rest would be funded by bonds paid for by increases on car and hotel rental taxes and through facility user fees.

Hotel taxes would increase from 15 percent to 16.75 percent and car rental taxes from 10 to 15 percent.

With 79 percent of the unofficial vote in, the referendum was failing 58 percent to 42 percent.

Voters came out in record numbers -- 66 percent in a light, nongubernatorial election year.

St. Paul Mayor Norm Coleman said he was disappointed, but added that "you've got to live with the voice of the people, and they have spoken."

With 100 percent of Harris County precincts reporting, the issue lost 55 percent to 45 percent.

Coleman urged St. Paul residents to approve a half-cent increase to fund the city's share of a proposed $325 million ballpark. Under Coleman's plan, the city, state and Twins each would pay one-third of the ballpark's cost.

The referendum involved only St. Paul's end of the deal. If voters had approved that leg of the plan, the deal still would need the approval of state lawmakers and Gov. Jesse Ventura.

Last month, Twins owner Carl Pohlad tentatively agreed to sell the team for $120 million to the principal owners of the NBA's Minnesota Timberwolves and the NHL's expansion Minnesota Wild, billionaire Glen Taylor and millionaire Robert Naegele Jr. The deal hinges on the construction of the new ballpark.

In Houston, Harris County voters were going against the notion of committing existing hotel and rental car taxes to fund half of a $160 million downtown arena for the Rockets.