131 Washington Street
Multifamily Housing in Cambridge, MA
At a glance
131 Washington Street is a 275,666-square-foot multifamily housing building in Cambridge, Massachusetts, built in 1938. In its 2024 Cambridge benchmarking disclosure it reported an ENERGY STAR score of 68 out of 100 (grade C), a site energy-use intensity of 75.1 kBtu/ft² and 1,173 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions. That score is higher than 32% of the 155 scored multifamily housing buildings in Cambridge.
BEUDO · reporting year 2024
Benchmarking record
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ENERGY STAR score | 68 (band C) |
| Site EUI | 75.1 kBtu/ft² |
| Source EUI | 103.5 kBtu/ft² |
| GHG emissions | 1,173 tCO₂e |
| GHG intensity | — |
| Electricity | 1,139,545 kWh |
| Natural gas | 168,068 therms |
| Gross floor area | 275,666 sq ft |
| Source record | cambridge:B1740:2024 |
The disclosure history
Year over year
| Year | Score | Δ | Site EUI | GHG emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024latest | 68 | -15 | 75.1 kBtu/ft² | 1,173 tCO₂e |
| 2023 | 83 | +8 | 61.2 kBtu/ft² | 971 tCO₂e |
| 2022 | 75 | -5 | 65.9 kBtu/ft² | 1,055 tCO₂e |
| 2021 | 80 | -1 | 64.0 kBtu/ft² | 1,021 tCO₂e |
| 2020 | 81 | ±0 | 58.6 kBtu/ft² | 949 tCO₂e |
| 2019 | 81 | -8 | 63.4 kBtu/ft² | 987 tCO₂e |
| 2018 | 89 | +11 | 62.1 kBtu/ft² | 972 tCO₂e |
| 2017 | 78 | +10 | 69.4 kBtu/ft² | 1,099 tCO₂e |
| 2016 | 68 | +22 | 74.5 kBtu/ft² | 1,181 tCO₂e |
| 2015 | 46 | 93.6 kBtu/ft² | 1,473 tCO₂e |
Compliance context
BEUDO
Cambridge's 2023 BEUDO amendments require non-residential buildings of 100,000+ sq ft to reach net-zero emissions by 2035 (reductions starting 2026) and those of 25,000–100,000 sq ft by 2050 (starting 2030).
Ownership
CAMBRIDGE HOUSING AUTHORITY
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Location
- Address
- 131 Washington Street
- City
- Cambridge
- State
- Massachusetts
- Coordinates
- 42.36380, -71.09510
Within ~1 km
Nearby benchmarked buildings
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- 145 Broadwayscore 91
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- 303 Binney Stscore —
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- 32 VASSAR STscore —
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- 555 Technology Squarescore —
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See also: most efficient in Cambridge · biggest emitters
How does 131 Washington Street compare with other multifamily housing buildings in Cambridge?
The latest disclosures cover 187 multifamily housing buildings in Cambridge, out of 902 buildings citywide. 131 Washington Street's ENERGY STAR score of 68 compares with an average of 75 across the 155 that report a score; it scores higher than 32% of them and lower than 68%. Its site EUI of 75.1 kBtu/ft² is about 32% above the average of 56.9 kBtu/ft² — it uses more energy per square foot than the typical building in that group.
At 275,666 sq ft, it is about twice the average floor area of 132,415 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 1938, 35 years earlier than the group's average year built (1973). Across all 24 jurisdictions BuildingCensus covers, the 59,945 multifamily housing buildings average an ENERGY STAR score of 70 and a site EUI of 59.0 kBtu/ft².
How has 131 Washington Street's energy performance changed over time?
BuildingCensus holds 10 Cambridge disclosures for 131 Washington Street, covering report years 2015–2024. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 46 in 2015 to 68 in 2024 (+22 points); its best year on file was 2018, at 89. Site EUI moved from 93.6 kBtu/ft² (2015) to 75.1 kBtu/ft² (2024), a 20% decrease. Reported emissions went from 1,473 tCO₂e to 1,173 tCO₂e over the same span (down 20%).
What does an ENERGY STAR score of 68 mean?
ENERGY STAR scores run from 1 to 100 and are computed by the EPA's Portfolio Manager as a percentile against similar buildings nationwide, adjusted for climate, size and use: a score of 68 means the building performs better than about 68% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 68 falls in band C — below median (55–69). It sits 7 points below 75, the threshold for ENERGY STAR certification. In Cambridge, 50% of scored buildings are at 75 or above.
Site energy-use intensity (EUI) is the energy a building uses on site in a year divided by its floor area, in thousand Btu per square foot — lower is more efficient. 131 Washington Street's 75.1 kBtu/ft² across 275,666 sq ft works out to about 20.7 billion Btu (6,067 MWh-equivalent) in 2024. Its source EUI of 103.5 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 1,139,545 kWh of electricity and 168,068 therms of natural gas for the year.
Which law requires 131 Washington Street to report its energy use?
131 Washington Street reports under BEUDO, the legal basis of Cambridge's Building Energy Use Disclosure Ordinance (BEUDO), which publishes each covered building's annual benchmarking results. The record shown here is the report-year 2024 disclosure (source record cambridge:B1740:2024). Cambridge's 2023 BEUDO amendments require non-residential buildings of 100,000+ sq ft to reach net-zero emissions by 2035 (reductions starting 2026) and those of 25,000–100,000 sq ft by 2050 (starting 2030).
More multifamily housing buildings in Cambridge
- 402 Rindge Avenue· 264,000 sq ft · score 88 (A)
- 2 Leighton Street· 262,310 sq ft · score 100 (A)
- 223 Concord Turnpike· 257,670 sq ft · score 100 (A)
- 165 Cambridge Park Drive· 250,995 sq ft · score 90 (A)
- 21 Walden Square Road· 250,389 sq ft · score 86 (A)
- 362 Rindge Ave· 249,723 sq ft · score 57 (C)
- Multifamily Housing buildings in Cambridge· 187 benchmarked
- All Cambridge benchmarked buildings· BEUDO
- Most efficient large buildings in Cambridge
- Least efficient large buildings in Cambridge
- Biggest emitters in Cambridge
Frequently asked questions
What is 131 Washington Street's energy grade?
131 Washington Street scores 68 out of 100 on ENERGY STAR — band C, below median (55–69) — in its 2024 Cambridge disclosure. Scores are national percentiles against similar buildings; 75+ qualifies for ENERGY STAR certification.
How much energy does 131 Washington Street use?
Its 2024 site energy-use intensity was 75.1 kBtu/ft² (103.5 kBtu/ft² source) across 275,666 sq ft, including 1,139,545 kWh of electricity and 168,068 therms of natural gas.
What are 131 Washington Street's carbon emissions?
131 Washington Street reported 1,173 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions for 2024.
Where is 131 Washington Street?
131 Washington Street is in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Its coordinates are 42.36380, -71.09510 (latitude, longitude), as published in the Building Energy Use Disclosure Ordinance (BEUDO) file.
How big is 131 Washington Street and when was it built?
131 Washington Street has 275,666 sq ft of gross floor area, as reported in its 2024 disclosure. The disclosure lists 1938 as its year built. It is classed as multifamily housing.
Is 131 Washington Street covered by BEUDO?
Yes — it appears in the 2024 Building Energy Use Disclosure Ordinance (BEUDO) disclosure, which lists the buildings reporting under BEUDO.
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About this data
Source: Building Energy Use Disclosure Ordinance (BEUDO) (BEUDO), as published October 2, 2026. See the methodology for how records are matched, cleaned and scored.
Cite as: BuildingCensus, “131 Washington Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts — 2024 benchmarking disclosure”, https://buildingcensus.com/buildings/cambridge/131-washington-street-0dae6d80 (data as of October 2, 2026).