1557 Massachusetts Avenue
College/University in Cambridge, MA
At a glance
1557 Massachusetts Avenue is a 39,188-square-foot college/university building in Cambridge, Massachusetts, built in 1957. In its 2024 Cambridge benchmarking disclosure it reported a site energy-use intensity of 61.4 kBtu/ft² and 158 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions.
BEUDO · reporting year 2024
Benchmarking record
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ENERGY STAR score | — |
| Site EUI | 61.4 kBtu/ft² |
| Source EUI | 104.7 kBtu/ft² |
| GHG emissions | 158 tCO₂e |
| GHG intensity | — |
| Electricity | 264,638 kWh |
| Water use | 246 kgal |
| Gross floor area | 39,188 sq ft |
| Source record | cambridge:B1625:2024 |
The disclosure history
Year over year
| Year | Score | Δ | Site EUI | GHG emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024latest | — | 61.4 kBtu/ft² | 158 tCO₂e | |
| 2023 | — | 63.6 kBtu/ft² | 164 tCO₂e | |
| 2022 | — | 68.9 kBtu/ft² | 176 tCO₂e | |
| 2021 | — | 40.6 kBtu/ft² | 104 tCO₂e | |
| 2020 | — | 6.3 kBtu/ft² | 18 tCO₂e | |
| 2019 | — | — | 75 tCO₂e | |
| 2018 | — | 76.1 kBtu/ft² | 201 tCO₂e | |
| 2017 | — | 94.6 kBtu/ft² | 248 tCO₂e | |
| 2016 | — | 96.0 kBtu/ft² | 250 tCO₂e | |
| 2015 | — | 88.9 kBtu/ft² | 235 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
PRESIDENT & FELLOWS OF HARVARD COLLEGE
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Location
- Address
- 1557 Massachusetts Avenue
- City
- Cambridge
- State
- Massachusetts
- Coordinates
- 42.37830, -71.11920
Within ~1 km
Nearby benchmarked buildings
- 52 Oxford Stscore —
College/University · 551,387 sq ft
- 1 Bennet Streetscore 67
Hotel · 498,000 sq ft
- 459 Broadwayscore 71
K-12 School · 403,393 sq ft
- 1 Oxford Stscore —
College/University · 355,836 sq ft
- 75 Mount Auburn Streetscore 79
Office · 345,571 sq ft
- 1545 Massachusetts Avenuescore —
College/University · 281,097 sq ft
See also: most efficient in Cambridge · biggest emitters
How does 1557 Massachusetts Avenue compare with other college/university buildings in Cambridge?
The latest disclosures cover 203 college/university buildings in Cambridge, out of 902 buildings citywide. Its site EUI of 61.4 kBtu/ft² is about 60% below the average of 154.3 kBtu/ft² — it uses less energy per square foot than the typical building in that group.
At 39,188 sq ft, it is about 60% below the average floor area of 96,964 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 1957, 8 years later than the group's average year built (1949). Across all 24 jurisdictions BuildingCensus covers, the 2,113 college/university buildings average an ENERGY STAR score of 68 and a site EUI of 98.7 kBtu/ft².
How has 1557 Massachusetts Avenue's energy performance changed over time?
BuildingCensus holds 10 Cambridge disclosures for 1557 Massachusetts Avenue, covering report years 2015–2024. Site EUI moved from 88.9 kBtu/ft² (2015) to 61.4 kBtu/ft² (2024), a 31% decrease. Reported emissions went from 235 tCO₂e to 158 tCO₂e over the same span (down 33%).
What does a site EUI of 61.4 kBtu/ft² mean?
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. 1557 Massachusetts Avenue's 61.4 kBtu/ft² across 39,188 sq ft works out to about 2.4 billion Btu (705 MWh-equivalent) in 2024. Its source EUI of 104.7 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 264,638 kWh of electricity and 246 thousand gallons of water for the year.
Which law requires 1557 Massachusetts Avenue to report its energy use?
1557 Massachusetts Avenue 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:B1625:2024). 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 college/university buildings in Cambridge
- 6 VASSAR ST· 39,121 sq ft · EUI 78.5 kBtu/ft²
- 58 Oxford St· 38,806 sq ft · EUI 468.6 kBtu/ft²
- 1 Harvard Yard· 38,331 sq ft · EUI 52.8 kBtu/ft²
- 155 FAWCETT STREET· 37,086 sq ft · EUI 21.5 kBtu/ft²
- 17 Kirkland St· 36,099 sq ft · EUI 36.3 kBtu/ft²
- 565-570 MEMORIAL DR· 35,748 sq ft · EUI 334.2 kBtu/ft²
- College/University buildings in Cambridge· 203 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 1557 Massachusetts Avenue's energy grade?
1557 Massachusetts Avenue did not report an ENERGY STAR score in its 2024 disclosure, but its site energy-use intensity was 61.4 kBtu/ft².
How much energy does 1557 Massachusetts Avenue use?
Its 2024 site energy-use intensity was 61.4 kBtu/ft² (104.7 kBtu/ft² source) across 39,188 sq ft, including 264,638 kWh of electricity.
What are 1557 Massachusetts Avenue's carbon emissions?
1557 Massachusetts Avenue reported 158 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions for 2024.
Where is 1557 Massachusetts Avenue?
1557 Massachusetts Avenue is in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Its coordinates are 42.37830, -71.11920 (latitude, longitude), as published in the Building Energy Use Disclosure Ordinance (BEUDO) file.
How big is 1557 Massachusetts Avenue and when was it built?
1557 Massachusetts Avenue has 39,188 sq ft of gross floor area, as reported in its 2024 disclosure. The disclosure lists 1957 as its year built. It is classed as college/university.
Is 1557 Massachusetts Avenue 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, “1557 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, Massachusetts — 2024 benchmarking disclosure”, https://buildingcensus.com/buildings/cambridge/1557-massachusetts-avenue-c748759a (data as of October 2, 2026).