My current commuter for going to and from work is a specialized singlecross

Its been great and I have no real complaints with it but as biking has grown to encompass more and more of my travelling Im needing to carry more stuff, and with more stuff comes more weight and ideally some gearing to help with that. So have have determined a second steel commuter with rack mounts and a few gears would be nice. Ive narrowed it down to two.
The first is the Novara buzz. It has all of the needed parts and has tabs for upgrading to disc brakes which is a plus. On the down side im not a fan of the triple up front.
https://www.rei.com/product/808781/novara-buzz-bike-2011

The second is the Redline Metro 9. Comes stock with all you need including fenders, however no disc tabs which is its main drawback. The drive train is what i would ideally prefer so no upgradig or tinkering would be needed.
https://www.redlinebicycles.com/bikes...e/2011-metro-9

Any additional feedback, comments, or suggestions that could be provided to help steer me one way or the other would be greatly appreciated. The price for either one is around 600 which is my price range. Thanks

Either sounds like a good base to start from. Personally, I'd go for the Redline (it's on my short list). You can always swap out forks and run discs up front.

Never thought I would have too many choices in a industry obsessed with new ubertanium carbon made from the ground bones of eddy merckx's exhumed corpse and where a seatpost that's .000000000005 grams heavier is a deal breaker.
My only issues with that is in an emergency situation that causes me to grab a handful of brake lever the drastic difference in braking power with just a disc up front might toss me over the front.

Just practice with it. My wife's new Specialized bike (can't remember the model right now, some Greek goddess name?) has hydraulic disk brakes and they work really well. But my old mountain bike with cantilever brakes and Koolstop Salmon brake pads stops about as quickly, such that if I don't brace myself before laying on the front brake I'll be sliding forward in a really painful way. I have way too much weight in my rear panniers to worry about actually flipping over, I think.