Helen "As for dripping on toes, again I guess that's a personal thing, but I don't know what would be dripping especially since I would be able to better ensure that all items were level " It's a safety thing. I am not talking about a little drip but an accidental sloshing of a water bath, roasting pan with fat or unexpected bubbling of sphagetti sauce out of a pan onto your foot, ankle or leg. It can run in your shoe. This is also why I mentioned about the rolling racks here. They are a relatively new thing and some come out much more quickly and you can slosh liquids right out of the pan and burn yourself. I know people who have had bakeware shatter when taking it out of the oven because you exceed the thermal tolerances of the dish taking it out of the oven. You might have an unexpected child or animal come out of nowhere. You can teach and warn them to stay away from the stove and no matter how carefully you watch them, accidents happen. In my line of work I have seen people wind up with skin grafts with kitchen spills and resulting burns so I am more aware of these things than most people. No one intends for these things to happen and being a kitchen, you can't eliminate all risks but it is a good thing to be aware of them. I know you said you can only access all the wall ovens from the side so while a consideration for you, I have no trouble at 5'3", standing in front, as my oven door (Electrolux) is only about 20" tall (Bosch is 22 3/8) and I can reach the racks with my back straight and my arms bent, so not everyone loses "all ergonomic advantage" by choosing a pull down door and the protection of the door providing a barrier may be important. The great thing about this forum is that there are often many sides to a coin. You consider pull down oven door a hinderance while I consider it a benefit. Some people are strictly concerned with the design for its aesthetic value so make their choice based on that. Each person has to balance the benefits and risks of each configuration for themselves and their situation and the more information you can gather, the better the decision.

Gotta love old brick foundations... This is a common problem with them when old mortar deteriorated over time or some cracks appear from minor foundation movement, etc. not to mention the lateral pressure from the soil outside or high water table can cause lots of moisture issues. Like Worthy suggested installing a drainage system like perforated pipe buried in clean stone under the basement floor along the foundation perimeter and tied into the sump-pump, and in addition installing a dimpled membrane along the wall perimeter and going under the slab is one way of doing it. Here is an example

Thank you all! To add some context, we are working with a custom builder and will have the architect draft our plans however, we get only two revisions upon the first draft. That is why I wanted to come in extra prepared. I'm sure our process is not like a truly custom home -- but I agree I want to leverage the expertise of the architect. Sounds like you're using the builder's "architect". I'm guessing the builder's "architect" is really a draftsman and not a LICENSED architect. Why do I say that? Because our builder basically had us work with his "architect" who turned out to be a draftsman, and a very poor one. Can you instead get your own architect? Even if the person you're using is licensed, chances are they will make it easiest for the builder and not what is best for you because he/she is "paid" by the builder. You bringing him/her your plans is not how a REAL architect works.

Many crawl space moisture problems result from inadequate storm water management at the surface. I suggest you grade the property and construct swales and any other storm water management features shown and reassess the need for any additional control measures. E.T.A. Also, make sure your home includes gutters and downspouts or some alternative means of capturing storm water from the roof and directing it away from the foundation.