Your budget leaves you a lot of alternatives. Trying to pick the exact scope that is best for you may also involve more specifics about it's use. At $2500. your choices are almost endless. There is Vortex RZ II, S&B PMII used, Minolta ZP5 used, NF ATACR used and the new Leica PRS. There are some newer companies offering some really high value scopes like TracToric and the Athlon Cronus. You can take a step down to the $1000. range and look at the SWFA SS5-20 used and the Vortex Razor I.
Read everything here by wjm308, Ilya, BigJimFish and HMFIC LowLight. You've been around here for awhile and may already be familiar with these guys and over the last couple of years a few more have been posting that show a significant degree of knowledge and produce excellent reviews.
Some things to look for are long warranties and US Service Depts., lots of elevation, ease of use, longevity of the company, at least 30mm tube diameter, European or Japanese sourced, etc. You can buy in the 3-18 range on a lot of the product which will allow you to get to your mentioned distances but I would suggest you consider the 4-20 or 5-30 ranges. Should you get hooked on the LR stuff you're gonna probably want to get out further, change cartridges and switch to a bolt gun. The higher mag range will get you to a mile with ease.
If you are already familiar with what I have posted than I apologize for taking your time. If not, I have a couple of suggestions. At $2500. you are only about $800. away from a used ZCO 5-27. Because of a new reticle, mostly, there have been some available in the PX at modest discounts. They are absolutely rated as Tier 1. If you have not already settled on something than buy a placeholder so you can get started. My recommendation is a used SWFA SS 5-20X50HD. If you can buy one used for S800.-950., in good condition to as new, you would be hard pressed to lose a hundred bucks on re-sale. They have good glass and super longevity and mechanics. It will allow you to get started.