Author(s): Elena Markovic

Abstract: Natural ventilation remains a critical passive design strategy for improving indoor environmental quality, reducing operational energy demand, and enhancing thermal comfort in medium-density urban housing. Rapid urbanization, rising building densities, and increasing dependence on mechanical cooling have weakened traditional ventilation pathways, particularly in warm and mixed climates. Architectural planning decisions at the early design stage strongly influence airflow patterns, pressure differentials, and occupant comfort throughout a building’s lifecycle. This paper examines key architectural planning considerations that enhance natural ventilation performance in medium-density housing typologies, including site orientation, building form, spatial configuration, façade articulation, and integration of transitional spaces. Emphasis is placed on balancing density requirements with climatic responsiveness, privacy, and acoustic control. The review synthesizes evidence from climatic design theory, urban morphology studies, and post-occupancy evaluations to identify planning strategies that improve cross-ventilation, stack-driven airflow, and wind-assisted cooling. Particular attention is given to courtyard layouts, block spacing, window placement, vertical circulation cores, and the role of semi-open spaces such as balconies and atria. The research also highlights constraints posed by urban heat islands, pollution, and regulatory frameworks that influence ventilation effectiveness. By consolidating planning-level insights, the paper proposes a conceptual framework linking urban context, building geometry, and internal spatial organization to ventilation outcomes. The findings aim to support architects, planners, and housing authorities in developing climate-responsive medium-density housing that reduces energy consumption while maintaining occupant comfort. The paper concludes that strategic architectural planning, when aligned with local climatic conditions and urban form, can substantially enhance natural ventilation potential and contribute to more sustainable and resilient urban housing environments. These planning principles are especially relevant for rapidly growing cities where resource efficiency, health, and long-term environmental performance must be addressed simultaneously through informed, context-sensitive architectural decision making at early design stages without compromising density goals or socio-cultural housing needs and affordability.

DOI: 10.22271/27078361.2026.v7.i1a.83

Pages: 01-05 | Views: 24 | Downloads: 10

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