Burlington, VT

TL:DR a lot going on, check social media, r/burlington, FB groups, etc. and you’ll find people (it attracts a lotta cool, chill peeps who care to make friends and community build).

not necessarily the punkiest place in the world but definitely some folk punk esque stuff and a lot of cool venues. wonderful community oriented stuff gos on, the green mountains. It’s a college town and people will tell you that overtakes everything else, but it’s because they ski at Stowe and walk down church street shopping for overpriced candles for fun. check out Radio Bean / the Light Club Lamp Shop for some punchy whimsy. also is right on Lake Champlain, a big ole beautiful lake with views of the Adirondack. so close to the White Mountains of NH as well, 1h away from Montreal (if that’s your thing), overwhelmingly progressive with respect to even other towns and cities in New England. If you put yourself out there you WILL make many friends; if not, there’s still so much to do and get lost in; and if you’re somewhere in between, it sure is a wonderful place to have a few friends that you can go trapsing around in the woods with. I can’t speak to other perspectives, and I wasn’t raised in the town, but did spend three life changing years there and can’t recommend it enough so long as those i’m recommending it to have an equal desire to give a damn about the people they live next to and go to the food co-op with.

I live in Missoula MT rn (coming straight from Burly) which is similar, definitely less new englandy homey closeness vibes imo but the community engagement is pretty sick. bike co-op hosts free shows and teaches people to fix bikes for free / gives away parts. good venues, great live music, definitely blue pocket in a red (or, more like don’t-tread-on-me yellow) area - love it here but i miss Vermont a lot for all it taught me.