Hi everyone,
My boyfriend and I have begun the daunting task of researching cities where we might like to live someday. We would really appreciate your help and input, as we are very overwhelmed.
Some criteria:
- Medium sized city; population greater than 10k but less than 500k
- If the city is on the smaller side of the above scale, access to a large city for shopping, dining, etc is desirable (within about 20 miles please)
- Not too hot or humid during the summer, with snow during winter months
- Diverse geography; mountains for hiking and lakes/the ocean for recreation (the utopian city of my dreams has secluded beachy areas where I could run my dogs off leash for a couple hours a day...but I suppose that's not
required 
)
- Preferably dog-friendly
- Somewhere culturally diverse and "artsy" would be nice
- We have no plans for children, so school districts don't matter
- Somewhere green and lush with plenty of trees
- Reasonable cost of living
- Low-moderate taxes (specifically property taxes; we would love to own a few acres)
Any input you guys have would be much appreciated! We were looking at Oregon and Washington State, but couldn't quite pinpoint our "perfect" (or close) city. However, we certainly don't want to limit our search to those two states.
Thanks in advance!
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