Some more planning considerations:

• 30" minimum radius on visible passenger tracks
• #8 minimum turnout size on visible passenger tracks
• 8' minimum length for any siding intended for holding an entire passenger train
• 2" minimum centerline parallel track spacing
• 24" minimum radius on visible freight tracks & hidden staging
• #6 minimum turnout size on visible freight tracks & hidden staging
• 30" maximum benchwork reach to wall/dividers
• 24" minimum aisle space

Here is a drawing (AnyRail 5) of my train room with 30" benchwork (in yellow) around the walls (red border lines). No peninsulas or islands drawn yet at this stage. This half of the basement is actually 13' x 46' but I'm only going to use 30' of the long dimension along the south wall (for now...) because the stairway is against the west wall in this half of the basement. The remaining 16' to the west wall & stairs from the edge of the benchwork I plan on finishing as a small lounge area. The doorway on the north wall leads to another 13' x 60' part of the basement which I have no plans on using for trains (for now...) and is the only access to that part of the basement. The furnace, laundry area, well pump, water heater, and storage areas are all in the north half of the basement. The east wall is the common wall to both halves of the basement and the north wall is the dividing wall.

Here's one track arrangement with the station in a corner, everything fits within the constraints above. Note that 2 double slips are used to save space in each approaching throat. I'm not sure if I like it to be all on a curve though, I may have to increase track spacing a little in that case. I also don't think there would be much room for anything else in the corner. It could work though. The shortest track is under 8' but it is the inside track which would be a coach yard track and doesn't have to hold a whole train. The shortest terminal track is the outside at 112" which is good.

I can see already before even putting any track down that my idea of putting the passenger terminal in a corner is probably not going to be ideal and stay within my constraints above. Of course, the only thing set in concrete here are the physical dimensions of the basement. 

Now is where the creativity begins...