Semi-open spaces of apartments considering COVID-19 pandemic: General expectations of balcony design in the post-pandemic world

Abstract

ABSTRACT During the recent global crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, many people are voluntarily or compulsorily required to stay at home and even work from home for several long and laborious periods. This is likely to happen in the future. Hence, a concern about the quality of living places has arisen, particularly in semi-open spaces, drawing more attention from users. This paper aims to measure the role, function, and influence of the balcony as a semi-open space in apartment living during the lockdown, by considering contributing factors in the function of balconies, including size, view, orientation, safety, and proximity together with residents’ preferences about balconies in two case studies with distinct approaches to balcony design. To achieve this aim, a questionnaire survey has been conducted and 322 residents in Tavus Tower and Mehr Housing Project located in Bandar-Anzali, Iran, participated. Based on collected data, the behavioural and functional performance of balconies and residents’ preferences were analysed by the IBM SPSS Statistics program. Results revealed that a high percentage of dwellers asserted the importance of having a decent balcony in an apartment and its far-reaching impact on boosting mental health and tolerating the prolonged pandemic. Also, the higher ratio of the area of a balcony to the floor area of an apartment, nature view from balcony, close proximity to the living room, and a higher sense of safety from balcony’s components can be regarded by architects to enhance the time of using balconies and the satisfaction of apartment users in Iran.