Mark, I finished off my basement well before thinking about getting back into trains. I sectioned off the back area into three rooms - a utility room workshop 13x13, the train room 13x13 and a storage area leading into a large crawl space 10x13.
Had I been thinking about a layout I could have made the utility room much smaller and gained another 3 to 5 feet in width. I have thought about cutting into the walls to make more space, but with the thought of putting the house on the market later this year (hopefully) that just does not make any sense. But I am able to do all my work outside the train room which helps keep everything neat and tidy. Just don't look in the utility room.
