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Congratulations! This is fantastic news, Linda.
I don't know much about installing electrical lighting so I'll leave those comments for somebody else. However, I would urge you to think about installing a high north window near the top of that 10' wall. As long as you're spending some money, make it a remote control adjustable shade that rolls up from the bottom of the window. High north light will rake in at wonderful dramatic angle for portrait work. It will be different from the full glass doors that you're used to. Place a podium setup where the light hits, and you'll have no excuse not to grab victims and paint from life relentlessly. (While you're building the podium, make it large enough for a sofa. I wish I had thought to do this.)
This means that you ought to have as big a space as possible. My ideal space would be an old high school gymnasium, I think. You need to be able to step back when you work from life, and if you are photographing the figure you'll get distortion if your camera is too close to the subject. Don't underestimate your storage needs; a vertical shelving system for canvases would be a great thing to have, for example. Also, it is pure luxury to have a lot of easels so that you can work on several things at once.
Don't forget that your studio also functions as a showroom for clients, so when you plan your lighting make sure you light some walls with spots to show off your work.
I have tile floors which are killer to stand on for long hours, so I went to Costco and bought black foam snap-together squares for extra cushioning.
Personally, I'm dragging my feet about painting my walls a dark neutral cool, but I know I have to get to it someday.
You're doing the right thing to ask for input while you're still in the planning stages. I've heard that there are architects who specialize in art studio design and you might try a search for them.
I know artists who work from huge computer monitors when they use their digital photos as reference. If I had a computer in my studio I'd try to figure out how to set a monitor up next to an easel, it sounds like a really good idea.
Oh yes, and get a good stereo system. Don't you love how I'm spending your money?
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