Laminated glass with have less to do with heat reduction and more to do with sound proofing. If you are buying a Velux skylight, they should already come with Low-e 366 glass as a standard. The lamination will provide an additional level of UV spectrum reduction, but the primary benefit to the lamination is for noise in this case.

You should never have to clean the interior short of some dusting if they are clean when they go in. If you have trees that drop debris or sap, there isn't much you can do about that short of cleaning the exteriors.

Find a way to keep some window. Nobody can answer without seeing the proposed kitchen plan anyway. Seems some tree cut down may be in order here for all we know. A thirty foot foyer? Who on EARTH could even see a cobweb up there?

Must it be All windows removed? We have a velux skylight. It's fine..and we have some deciduous tree and pine needle drop but debris does not stay on the skylight. We do not have your pitched roof...so we easily go up once before winter and clean gutters....and I open the skylight and just dust off, I guess you'd say. The issue to me is why the kitchen can't retain some window sq footage. Light/view/opening feature for air/etc is a lot to forfeit. I would work on the plan..hopper or awning windows? or a couple narrow casements? This is work, to get this appropriate for your goals....but I would not remove a wall of windows.

If the ones you have get dirty so will any new one and what is wrong with solar tubes in a kitchen pray tell.I do beleive there are many ways to add natural light in a kitchen even if some windows need to be removed for design . please post some pics and a floor plan since I do not here a kitchen designer involved in this plan . Architects make very poor KDs and so do contractors.

We just did a basement renivation that included adding egress wells/Windows in two bedrooms. We proposed adding another window at the kitchen.

The client insisted that the all white kitchen and a few extra lights would be enough.

Now that the project is complete, we are digging two more egress wells cutting thru concrete and new framed walls to add Windows.

Just saying ; )