I think the advice you recieved from a CA member would be the most accurate. I have never grown in that situation. I do happen to have about 100 sf. raised bed garden. This is what I have planted. 10 tomatoes some cherry some large. Underneath the tomatoes I have onions, borage, basil and canteloupe growing. The canteloupe are planted in their own 'square' but I let the vines grow under the tomatoes and trim off the very bottom of the tomato plant to give them better air circulation. I also have trellised beside the tomatoes beans and a couple cucumbers. I have 3 eggplants, 3 goosberries, 3 green peppers and a few watermelon which grow under the eggplant and gooseberries the way the canteloupe do under the tomatoes. I have 12 collards, 20 strawberry plants, 20 sq. planted with corn. On the edges of the corn I have summer and winter squash. a small spot for sweet potato. On the edge of my main planter I have winter squash but I cheat there because I let them grow out over my grass which extends the 100 sq. Oh I also have a few radish under some of the tomatoes and such, by the time the tomatoes all get to be huge I'll harvest those and mulch the area. I practice square foot gardening combined with successive planting combined with intensive plantings. So far it has worked well except the carrots. They never got very big under my tomatoes last fall and from what I've read tomatoes actually inhibit carrots. Last year I did have a blight that spread through my tomatoes but they kept producing til the real heat hit. then I wiped the garden and replanted in the fall. I imagine Cal. is like florida you can do a spring and fall planting of tomatoes and such. I had tomatoes til Christmas. If you start your seeds in pots you can make that 100 sq. go even farther. I started my tomatoes while my carrots and turnips where still in the ground. I had 8 more weeks of growing while they got bigger. You can transplant a large portion of plants which means others can be growing while you are still waiting on germination. I'm starting Okra tonight so that when the corn is done the heat lover can take it's place. I'll also let the sweet potato roam more, it is right beside the corn so by the time the corn is done the sweet potato will appreciate more space. As the time gets closer I'll also pre-sprout some heat loving beans (maybe, I might just do those in place).

There are numerous soil providers in the vicinity. The City of Tacoma itself provides TAGRO soil products comprised of yard waste and biosolids and are available bagged or in bulk by pick up or delivery. Cedar Grove composting is located in nearby Maple Valley and provides a certified organic compost to various parts of the Puget Sound area, again available bagged or in bulk. There is also H&B Topsoil on Portland Avenue and G&L Bark and Supply. I would avoid 100% compost for the raised beds - too rich and will shrink significantly in volume. What is ideal is a soil mix that includes both a mineral soil and organic matter in appropriate concentrations. Look for something called 3-way mix or garden planting mix - most bulk soil suppliers will offer something like this. Cedar Grove's Vegetable Garden mix is about ideal for your purposes. Some suppliers require a minimum delivery amount that may exceed what you need or can use. You can either share a delivery with neighbors or if access to a pick up, haul your own. Here is a link that might be useful: Cedar Grove veggie mix

I would keep the herbs in the small containers. The parsley that I planted in a raised bed turned into a small shrub, and I only used a fraction of the parsley it produced. The rosemary will grow into a shrub, too. The veggies can grow to their normal size in the raised bed. Your plan looks good, with the tall plants to the north. Be sure to pick your Swiss chard when the leaves are small, or it can take over the garden, too. Good luck! Here is a link that might be useful: What's Growing On?

In your situation I would suspect that I had a lot of Nitrogen and probably not enough of the other vital plant nutrients. Even after getting a good mix of composts I was apparently short on Phosphorus last year, and my radishes and carrots did not produce the nice, big, roots that they should have. I would add either bone meal (if you want to go organic and are willing to risk giving critters an incentive to dig up your garden, or one of the synthetic phosphorus supplements). Then there is Potassium, which can be supplemented by adding wood ashes, 'greensand' (no idea what it is, it's one of those things I keep reading about from time to time (apparently a ground up sandstone from long ago which is rich in potassium...)) (Thank you Wikipedia.) Anyhow, I suspect a little extra nutrition will go a long way for you. Hopefully I will be able to report on the progress of my radishes shortly. I added bone-meal this spring, and so far my garden hasn't been dug up, hopefully I mixed it in well and didn't leave any lumps... Here is a link that might be useful: Information about plant nutrients.