I share your issues with Surly's lack of stack height, and have seen quite a few stragglers/cross checks built up with ridiculous numbers of spaces because of this issue. For my gravel bike I found the perfect geometry in Black Mountain Cycle's Monster Cross, which is a steel frame bike that can fit up to 45c tires. They have frame sizes that go up to 64cm, but I think as it's a small shop and builds are semi-custom, a complete bike would cost you a little over your $2000 limit. I just bought a frame and built mine up for about $1500, admittedly some of the parts were recycled.
https://blackmtncycles.com
I'd personally avoid Aluminum frames like the plague, but that's just like, my opinion man.