As the global urban landscape continues to evolve, the need for providing sustainable and energy-efficient urban infrastructure becomes highly critical. While the existing townships are struggling to adopt innovations in their regular services for reducing the energy and environmental footprints, a more conservative and sustainable approach is anticipated by evaluating the infrastructural project activity right from its inception. In this regard, consideration of design features can be adopted by virtue of advanced materials and construction techniques that can fulfill regulatory compliances and ensure safe and sustainable construction with energy and economic benefits. The present study proposes a comprehensive structural design-based protocol tailored for the construction of energy-efficient buildings in the context of smart city projects in India. At the outset, the framework primarily addresses some of the key parameters such as material selection, building orientation, passive design strategies, and innovative structural systems, which include structural analysis and design considering provisions for alternative energy sources and ventilation space. By incorporating state-of-the-art smart technologies such as IoT-based sensor networks, building automation systems, and data analytics, the protocol aims to optimize the dynamic interplay between the structural integrity of the building and its energy performance. The results indicate that utilization of building blocks made of recycled aggregates have reduced the dead load and thermal insulation requirements for the building. The proposed framework integrates concepts of structural design, recycled materials, building energy conservation and smart control systems for reshaping the urban spaces to adopt sustainability in the fabric of smart cities.