At a glance
250 South Wacker Drive is a 251,826-square-foot office building at 250 S Wacker Dr in Chicago, Illinois, built in 1958. In its 2023 Chicago benchmarking disclosure it reported an ENERGY STAR score of 84 out of 100 (grade B), a site energy-use intensity of 50.8 kBtu/ft² and 1,259 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions. That score is higher than 78% of the 320 scored office buildings in Chicago.
Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance · reporting year 2023
Benchmarking record
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ENERGY STAR score | 84 (band B) |
| Site EUI | 50.8 kBtu/ft² |
| Source EUI | 99.8 kBtu/ft² |
| GHG emissions | 1,259 tCO₂e |
| GHG intensity | 5.0 kgCO₂e/ft² |
| Electricity | 1,955,895 kWh |
| Natural gas | 61,281 therms |
| Water use | 414 kgal |
| Gross floor area | 251,826 sq ft |
| Source record | chicago:158405:2023 |
The disclosure history
Year over year
| Year | Score | Δ | Site EUI | GHG emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023latest | 84 | +7 | 50.8 kBtu/ft² | 1,259 tCO₂e |
| 2022 | 77 | +5 | 63.1 kBtu/ft² | 1,494 tCO₂e |
| 2021 | 72 | -5 | 63.6 kBtu/ft² | 1,611 tCO₂e |
| 2020 | 77 | +1 | 62.2 kBtu/ft² | 1,687 tCO₂e |
| 2019 | 76 | +4 | 71.4 kBtu/ft² | — |
| 2018 | 72 | -17 | 73.0 kBtu/ft² | 2,092 tCO₂e |
| 2017 | 89 | +2 | 67.1 kBtu/ft² | 2,224 tCO₂e |
| 2016 | 87 | ±0 | 69.4 kBtu/ft² | 2,364 tCO₂e |
| 2015 | 87 | ±0 | 67.6 kBtu/ft² | 2,538 tCO₂e |
| 2014 | 87 | 73.0 kBtu/ft² | 2,549 tCO₂e |
Compliance context
Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance
Covered buildings that fail to benchmark and report face fines of up to $100 plus $25 per day of violation under the ordinance.
Ownership
No owning organisation shown. Names of private individuals in the disclosure are not published here.
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Location
- Address
- 250 S Wacker Dr
- City
- Chicago
- State
- Illinois
- ZIP
- 60606
- Coordinates
- 41.88524, -87.62778
Within ~1 km
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- Harris Bank Buildingscore —
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See also: most efficient in Chicago · biggest emitters
How does 250 South Wacker Drive compare with other office buildings in Chicago?
The latest disclosures cover 387 office buildings in Chicago, out of 3,852 buildings citywide. 250 South Wacker Drive's ENERGY STAR score of 84 compares with an average of 69 across the 320 that report a score; it scores higher than 78% of them and lower than 20%. Its site EUI of 50.8 kBtu/ft² is about 28% below the average of 70.4 kBtu/ft² — it uses less energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 5.0 kgCO₂e/ft² is about 33% below the group average of 7.5 kgCO₂e/ft².
At 251,826 sq ft, it is about half of the average floor area of 488,124 sq ft for those buildings. Its 1958 construction date is close to the group's average year built (1957). Across all 24 jurisdictions BuildingCensus covers, the 15,264 office buildings average an ENERGY STAR score of 73 and a site EUI of 59.3 kBtu/ft².
How has 250 South Wacker Drive's energy performance changed over time?
BuildingCensus holds 10 Chicago disclosures for 250 South Wacker Drive, covering report years 2014–2023. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 87 in 2014 to 84 in 2023 (-3 points); its best year on file was 2017, at 89. Site EUI moved from 73.0 kBtu/ft² (2014) to 50.8 kBtu/ft² (2023), a 30% decrease. Reported emissions went from 2,549 tCO₂e to 1,259 tCO₂e over the same span (down 51%).
What does an ENERGY STAR score of 84 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 84 means the building performs better than about 84% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 84 falls in band B — above median (70–84). Scores of 75 or higher meet the threshold for ENERGY STAR certification; certification itself is a separate, verified application that the disclosure does not record. In Chicago, 35% 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. 250 South Wacker Drive's 50.8 kBtu/ft² across 251,826 sq ft works out to about 12.8 billion Btu (3,749 MWh-equivalent) in 2023. Its source EUI of 99.8 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 1,955,895 kWh of electricity, 61,281 therms of natural gas and 414 thousand gallons of water for the year.
Which law requires 250 South Wacker Drive to report its energy use?
250 South Wacker Drive reports under the Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance, the legal basis of the Chicago Energy Benchmarking program, which publishes each covered building's annual benchmarking results. The record shown here is the report-year 2023 disclosure (source record chicago:158405:2023). Covered buildings that fail to benchmark and report face fines of up to $100 plus $25 per day of violation under the ordinance.
More office buildings in Chicago
- 65 E Wacker Place· 249,062 sq ft · score 79 (B)
- Cubs Office Building· 247,887 sq ft · score 28 (D)
- Monroe Building· 243,166 sq ft · score 79 (B)
- One11 West Illinois· 242,035 sq ft · score 58 (C)
- 29 East Madison LLC· 240,076 sq ft · score 60 (C)
- 210 North Carpenter· 238,985 sq ft · score 84 (B)
- Office buildings in Chicago· 387 benchmarked
- All Chicago benchmarked buildings· Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance
- Most efficient large buildings in Chicago
- Least efficient large buildings in Chicago
- Biggest emitters in Chicago
Frequently asked questions
What is 250 South Wacker Drive's energy grade?
250 South Wacker Drive scores 84 out of 100 on ENERGY STAR — band B, above median (70–84) — in its 2023 Chicago disclosure. Scores are national percentiles against similar buildings; 75+ qualifies for ENERGY STAR certification.
How much energy does 250 South Wacker Drive use?
Its 2023 site energy-use intensity was 50.8 kBtu/ft² (99.8 kBtu/ft² source) across 251,826 sq ft, including 1,955,895 kWh of electricity and 61,281 therms of natural gas.
What are 250 South Wacker Drive's carbon emissions?
250 South Wacker Drive reported 1,259 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions (5.0 kgCO₂e/ft²) for 2023.
Where is 250 South Wacker Drive?
250 South Wacker Drive is at 250 S Wacker Dr, in Chicago, Illinois 60606. Its coordinates are 41.88524, -87.62778 (latitude, longitude), as published in the Chicago Energy Benchmarking file.
How big is 250 South Wacker Drive and when was it built?
250 South Wacker Drive has 251,826 sq ft of gross floor area, as reported in its 2023 disclosure. The disclosure lists 1958 as its year built. It is classed as office.
Is 250 South Wacker Drive covered by the Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance?
Yes — it appears in the 2023 Chicago Energy Benchmarking disclosure, which lists the buildings reporting under the Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance.
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About this data
Source: Chicago Energy Benchmarking (Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance), as published October 2, 2026. See the methodology for how records are matched, cleaned and scored.
Cite as: BuildingCensus, “250 South Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois — 2023 benchmarking disclosure”, https://buildingcensus.com/buildings/chicago/250-south-wacker-drive-c54187d2 (data as of October 2, 2026).