Oh, so many helpful replies that my mind is reeling. Thank you all so much! Blfenton, yes, there are 53" between the sink and the island, and 38" between the range and the island. I'll post pics in a few minutes. I'm having a hard time picturing the triangular island, but I like the idea. Between the end of the sink run cabinet and the sliding door is 32" of wall with an electrical outlet and light switches. That is where the cat fountain and feeding dish are at present. It is unlovely. Davidrol, lol! Yes, I am practical. I want the kitchen to be pretty, but first I want it to function without smoke alarms going off and smells lingering. I don't want to keep opening and closing those annoying bifold doors in the garage entry. Note to self: Look into replacing those with different doors. Herbflavor, aha! I seem to have an acute lack of vision, which is why I came here in the first place. Okay, I will try to commit that to paper. Thank you for opening these possibilities for me. Rosie, I am trying to get my head around moving the doorway, mostly because I don't know what you mean by "bottom wall." The sink wall? Yes, a good counter and storage. Island or perimeter, I have no preference. I'll just have to play around and see what will feel the best. The thought of reorienting the island has just made my jaw gape open. I honestly hadn't considered it. Doh! More soon.

Thanks very much, buehl, for your design showing the work zones. Right now that wall with the oven-range-fridge is 10 linear feet so the actual cooking zone is only 4 feet. If we go with a 36" cooktop that's pretty tight. Do you think the plan would be enhanced (in form and/or function) if we made the pantry 2 feet smaller to extend that wall to 12 feet? This is shown in mamagoose's post above. I would still have a pantry where I could keep dry goods and small appliances, but it would be more of a pantry closet than a walk in. I could live with that. In terms of the 1st floor master...it's still under consideration. My ideas about aging in place are evolving after dealing with 2 sets of parents who attempted to do it. Let's just say it hasn't been pretty or easy on any of us. My current feeling is that if we can't get up and down stairs then we've gotten to the point where we really can't take care of this property and it's time to get a condo near the kids. We've spent too many weekends driving for hours to respond to household and medical emergencies to wish that on any of our offspring. But right now we're healthy, in our 60's, and enjoying life to the fullest while we can!

I have a similar layout. I would move the fridge to the left to the doorway. Then I would move the range to the left a foot or so. When I cook all my prep is between sink and range so when I remodeled last year I made that change and love the extra 12 inches between sink and range. Also, when in doubt go big on window!

. Most specifically is the fridge too far from the sink? Room is about 18 feet long so fridge to sink is going to be 14 feet apart. Yes it's too far. 9' or less is considered ideal. On the non working side you need a minimum of 36" of walking space.