Acer circinatum. AA. rubrum and x freemanii will grow double your 35' height limit.

Yeah, now I'm thinking that the tree I'm trying to find isn't a rubrum at all, but something else.

We planted some street trees about 16-18 years ago in Seattle, and they told us they were called "Flame Maple." I kind of assumed they were a rubrum, but these "Flame maples" are only supposed to grow to 20' (they're about 20' now, having grown approximately a foot or so each year). Perhaps it's because they're street trees that they've stayed small, or maybe the city was just plain wrong about their eventual height.

At any rate, we really like them, they have a nice, rounded crown shape, attractive flowers and foliage in the spring, and fall color ranging from yellow to deep red (changing from day to day in October/November).

If anyone knows what they are, I would like to try to find some more for our new lot. Tomorrow I'll try calling the city, on the off-chance that someone is still there who might know exactly what they were all those years ago!

I wonder if the maple you are thinking of is Acer ginnala, or Amur Maple. I think I have heard them called Flame maples, for their fall color, and I know they are sometimes used for small street trees.

From Michael Dirr "Manual of Woody Landscape Plants"(1998)
Acer grinnala 'Flame' - "Dense shrub or small tree with red fruits and fiery red fall color; several nurserymen have indicated that this selection is superior to seedlings of the species; 'Flame' is seed grown and should be somewhat variable in fall and fruit color; has performed extremely well in trials at Spartanburg, SC."

Another maple you might wish to search out - Acer mandshuricum (Manchurian Maple) - again from Dirr; "...a fantastic small tree that develops an upright-spreading crown. Height approaches 30 to 40' and spread slightly less."

Thanks for the great suggestions! After spending half an hour this morning being convinced by a particular nursery saleswoman that Sweetgum was the tree I needed -- and then finding in Sunset that it grows to 60 feet tall! -- I was more frustrated than ever. I'm going to look into the trees mentioned, but may just end up planting more vine maples after all!

I would second gweirdo's suggestion of Acer mandshuricum (if you can find it)- one of my very favorite maples, tho a bit gawky as a youngster. Or consider Acer griseum- Paperbark maple- great fall color and you get that incredible bark as well.

I'd avoid the sweetgum (yes, my neighbor's is WAY tall!) also because of the stickery balls they drop in the fall, too. Unless you like such surprises when walking barefoot in the yard...

25th AVE E (Seattle) has a sweetgum street-tree 99 feet tall*. Manchurian maple tends to grow low and broad, is very rare in North America so trying to do the job with that one might not work out too well either. Similar Nikko maple could be a better choice. Paperbark maple has the problem as a street (or other publicly accessible location) tree of being likely to end up with initials and other messages carved in its trunk, once it gets big enough. Amur maple, red maple, Freeman maple and so on all very commonly planted already, novelty of something like Nikko maple would be a definite plus.

*See reference linked to below

Here is a link that might be useful: Trees of Seattle