Trees would do little to reduce the highway noise. For noise abatement you'd need an earthen berm or a sound wall. Sorry. If you're hearing highway noise from inside your home, replace the windows. If you only hear it outside, that's great. In time you'll tune it out.

I agree about the noise . I live up above a hwy and inside not one sound from it . We have good thermal windows and they do the trick Outside we have a pool and a huge entertaining area , yes you hear the noise thats life. As for actul design that needs a pro . We can offer advice but IMO building a pool is not a DIY job. I would plant some trees along the frnce to block the view of the commercial bldgs. As for threst I would need a lot more info. First is to find out if an in ground pool is possible where you want it. Can you have chickens ? How big is the lot. Post a to scale plan of it here so we get some idea of the area you have. Can we see the front of the house please.

Evergreens along the back fence would be a huge improvement! I think I would go with columnar conifers. They won't take up a ton of your footage and they grow fast. As far as the rest--well get a feel for the space and I bet a lay out that works for you will come to mind.

I might suggest hiring a landscape architect or a landscaping company that has an architect on staff.

for that entertainment area, strongly consider a Barcelona sofa replica, works extremely good for outdoor areas

Some inspiration

https://www.landcon.ca/project/montbeck-modern/

" I’d like to put in some noise-abating privacy trees (maybe evergreen). "

As previously noted, plants are very poor at any noise abatement. I live with my property surrounded by a block wide greenbelt so heavily planted you can't walk through it.....but I can still hear the noise of outside activities from the bordering properties a block away. Sound waves pass right through all that vegetation! Only a solid wall - like those constructed alongside freeways - will work effectively to deflect noise. Even a berm or mound is not much help unless it is tall enough......and very few are :-)

Instead, focus on how you wish to use the backyard and develop a landscape plan that will address those needs/wants. Including a water feature somewhere near where most of your outdoor living takes place will be far more effective at diminishing any road noise than a bunch of plants could hope to!!

You have a big chunk of real estate to work with and it is well beyond the scope of any advice or suggestions you might generate from an online forum that attracts mostly hobby gardeners, not designers :-) The best advice you have received here so far is to hire an experienced designer to assists you in this project.

Circling back to ask about the chicken coop. Have you had chickens? The coop and entertainment/leisure areas are not a good match. Coops smell and attract a lot of flying insects. I think it's worth some study.

Oh wow, such a huge yard and it's a blank canvas! Some ideas explorations for you:

It’s all about perspective! My first thought: well that’s not a very big space for all those things. LOL But I live in rural America where we’re accustomed to lots of room.

My opinion is that you should decide right away if there’s going to be an in the ground pool. That’s a large and expensive undertaking which will have a big effect on the rest of the yard.

What are the measurements of the yard, especially side-to-side? Can you get pool-digging equipment back there?

And is the property zoned for chickens? Most people don’t like to be awakened by a rooster.

You might be surprised how many quite urban areas allow chickens. At least hens and chicks. Roosters are not always welcome and often prohibited. Portland OR and San Francisco allow 4, Seattle 8. New York City has no number limit.

I would include a loud water feature with the pool. And replace windows if you can hear the traffic in the house.