We have Specialized Expedition Sports and love them. Ours have the mountain bike tires, but they also made a comfort bike with hybrid tires, which (I think) was called the Crossroads.
However, I checked the lineup for 2009 on their site, and could not find any comfort bikes listed for Specialized in the coming year. Maybe you can get a deal on a leftover 2008, or find something on Craig's List within your price range.
Just a caveat, though: if you are planning to ride often over longer distances, I would suggest you lean more toward a hybrid. I am keeping my comfort bike for shorter casual rides, but "outgrew" it more quickly than I expected.