No one ever complains about having too many windows, said John Potter, a partner with Morgante Wilson Architects in Evanston, Illinois.

“The first step in any remodel or new construction is to orient rooms where they can get the most natural light.”

While it’s a little more challenging to bring natural light into an urban townhouse or high-rise condo than with a single-family home, architects find creative ways to remodel city homes to fill them with the light people crave. Adding more windows might appear to be a simple solution, but that’s impossible in some urban dwellings because of zoning rules, landmarked status or the configuration of the building. Instead, architects are opening stairwells, reconfiguring floor plans and installing skylights to create a sense of light and air.

“The challenge with interior townhouses is that they’re long and narrow and therefore dark in the middle,” said Sarah Jefferys, principal of Sarah Jefferys Architecture + Interiors in New York City. “Ideally, you can open the back with floor-to-ceiling glass. Even if the building is landmarked and you can’t change the front, you can often do the back.”

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