This paper presents the simulation results of the wind environment around a single high-rise building and that around two tall buildings in tandem arrangement by using the lattice Boltzmann method with an aim to understand the ventilation issues around high-rise buildings in an urban environment. We analyzed the velocity distribution around the buildings and performed numericl simulations to reveal the formation and evolution law of the complex vortex system around the high-rise buildings.Numerical simulation results manifest a periodicity phenamenon in the process of the vortex evolution. For the case of two high-rise buildings, wind velocity in the space between the two buildings is very small, which is nearly a silent regime. Wind velocity above the front building is relatively larger and the maximum wind velocity is approximately 2.5 times the incoming wind velocity. The numerical results can be used in layout planning of high-rise residential buildings to create better environment for ventilation purpose in an urban area.