Richmond or Baltimore?

Hi everyone! We're a family of 3 looking for our next home and have narrowed it down to Richmond, VA or Baltimore, MD.

We've most recently lived in San Francisco/Oakland, Denver, and Austin (jobs took us there) and we're looking for a place to stick (can no longer deal with 8 months of on-and-off oppressive TX heat or the TX politics).

We're done with exploring 'purple' cities and want to live in cities, not suburbs, that are solidly blue with 4 seasons, and that aren't as pricey and over populated as SF, Denver and Austin city centers.

Our 8 year old daughter continues to show deep interest in the arts (writing, singing, fine arts, etc) so we want to land in a place with a strong arts identity. Since she is an only child, we're also interested in neighborhoods with kids and tight-knit communities where she can safely run outside and play.

I'm a consultant and my husband has a hybrid job that requires travel to NYC once or twice a month. So somewhat easy access to NYC is ideal too.

Based on my research so far, Richmond and Baltimore stand out as the strongest candidates. Hoping to hear from folks that have lived in either place the past 2-3 years vs 10 years ago. (We know how much these cities are changing!) And open to suggestions if our interests trigger any other cities.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts :)

Edit: Thanks SO MUCH to everyone who has commented, I am so appreciative of all of your helpful advice. It's definitely guided how we will approach this!