CH1

How does CH1 compare with other data center buildings in Chicago?

The latest disclosures cover 7 data center buildings in Chicago, out of 3,852 buildings citywide. CH1's ENERGY STAR score of 90 compares with an average of 59 across the 6 that report a score; it scores higher than 67% of them and lower than 17%. Its site EUI of 965.7 kBtu/ft² is about 48% above the average of 651.1 kBtu/ft² — it uses more energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 135.1 kgCO₂e/ft² is about 83% above the group average of 73.8 kgCO₂e/ft².

At 160,000 sq ft, it is about 57% below the average floor area of 372,428 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 1919, 23 years earlier than the group's average year built (1942). Across all 24 jurisdictions BuildingCensus covers, the 267 data center buildings average an ENERGY STAR score of 68 and a site EUI of 504.4 kBtu/ft².

How has CH1's energy performance changed over time?

BuildingCensus holds 5 Chicago disclosures for CH1, covering report years 2019–2023. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 97 in 2019 to 90 in 2023 (-7 points); its best year on file was 2020, at 98. Site EUI moved from 702.9 kBtu/ft² (2019) to 965.7 kBtu/ft² (2023), an 37% increase. Reported emissions went from 18,282 tCO₂e to 21,620 tCO₂e over the same span (up 18%).

What does an ENERGY STAR score of 90 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 90 means the building performs better than about 90% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 90 falls in band A — high performer (85–100). 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. CH1's 965.7 kBtu/ft² across 160,000 sq ft works out to about 154.5 billion Btu (45,283 MWh-equivalent) in 2023. Its source EUI of 2704.0 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 45,283,841 kWh of electricity and 27,968 thousand gallons of water for the year.

Which law requires CH1 to report its energy use?

CH1 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:131236:2023). Covered buildings that fail to benchmark and report face fines of up to $100 plus $25 per day of violation under the ordinance.