At a glance
Cook County Building is a 638,592-square-foot office building at 118 N. Clark St. in Chicago, Illinois, built in 1906. In its 2023 Chicago benchmarking disclosure it reported an ENERGY STAR score of 61 out of 100 (grade C), a site energy-use intensity of 84.7 kBtu/ft² and 5,421 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions. That score is higher than 28% of the 320 scored office buildings in Chicago.
Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance · reporting year 2023
Benchmarking record
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ENERGY STAR score | 61 (band C) |
| Site EUI | 84.7 kBtu/ft² |
| Source EUI | 169.4 kBtu/ft² |
| GHG emissions | 5,421 tCO₂e |
| GHG intensity | 8.5 kgCO₂e/ft² |
| Electricity | 8,602,771 kWh |
| Natural gas | 247,399 therms |
| Gross floor area | 638,592 sq ft |
| Source record | chicago:101756:2023 |
The disclosure history
Year over year
| Year | Score | Δ | Site EUI | GHG emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023latest | 61 | +5 | 84.7 kBtu/ft² | 5,421 tCO₂e |
| 2022 | 56 | +5 | 96.7 kBtu/ft² | 5,658 tCO₂e |
| 2021 | 51 | -2 | 101.8 kBtu/ft² | 6,281 tCO₂e |
| 2020 | 53 | +7 | 97.1 kBtu/ft² | 6,532 tCO₂e |
| 2019 | 46 | +17 | 108.6 kBtu/ft² | 7,571 tCO₂e |
| 2018 | 29 | -30 | 121.5 kBtu/ft² | 8,055 tCO₂e |
| 2017 | 59 | +4 | 105.1 kBtu/ft² | 8,196 tCO₂e |
| 2016 | 55 | +3 | 106.1 kBtu/ft² | 8,755 tCO₂e |
| 2015 | 52 | -1 | 106.3 kBtu/ft² | 9,618 tCO₂e |
| 2014 | 53 | 109.0 kBtu/ft² | 9,727 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
- 118 N. Clark St.
- City
- Chicago
- State
- Illinois
- ZIP
- 60602
- Coordinates
- 41.80792, -87.59069
Within ~1 km
Nearby benchmarked buildings
- 525 West Monroescore 78
Office · 1,028,492 sq ft
Multifamily Housing · 562,000 sq ft
- Congress Centerscore 80
Office · 527,238 sq ft
Multifamily Housing · 398,623 sq ft
- Taft HSscore 94
K-12 School · 388,970 sq ft
Multifamily Housing · 299,177 sq ft
See also: most efficient in Chicago · biggest emitters
How does Cook County Building compare with other office buildings in Chicago?
The latest disclosures cover 387 office buildings in Chicago, out of 3,852 buildings citywide. Cook County Building's ENERGY STAR score of 61 compares with an average of 69 across the 320 that report a score; it scores higher than 28% of them and lower than 71%. Its site EUI of 84.7 kBtu/ft² is about 20% above the average of 70.4 kBtu/ft² — it uses more energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 8.5 kgCO₂e/ft² is about 13% above the group average of 7.5 kgCO₂e/ft².
At 638,592 sq ft, it is about 31% above the average floor area of 488,124 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 1906, 50 years earlier than 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 Cook County Building's energy performance changed over time?
BuildingCensus holds 10 Chicago disclosures for Cook County Building, covering report years 2014–2023. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 53 in 2014 to 61 in 2023 (+8 points). Site EUI moved from 109.0 kBtu/ft² (2014) to 84.7 kBtu/ft² (2023), a 22% decrease. Reported emissions went from 9,727 tCO₂e to 5,421 tCO₂e over the same span (down 44%).
What does an ENERGY STAR score of 61 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 61 means the building performs better than about 61% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 61 falls in band C — below median (55–69). It sits 14 points below 75, the threshold for ENERGY STAR certification. 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. Cook County Building's 84.7 kBtu/ft² across 638,592 sq ft works out to about 54.1 billion Btu (15,852 MWh-equivalent) in 2023. Its source EUI of 169.4 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 8,602,771 kWh of electricity and 247,399 therms of natural gas for the year.
Which law requires Cook County Building to report its energy use?
Cook County Building 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:101756:2023). 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
- IL0054ZZ - CLARK FEDERAL BLDG· 635,978 sq ft · score 40 (D)
- 633 N St. Clair· 632,163 sq ft · score 89 (A)
- 203 North LaSalle· 624,735 sq ft · score 76 (B)
- 333 N. Green· 622,736 sq ft · score 77 (B)
- The Jewelers Building· 621,390 sq ft · score 72 (B)
- AG 300 South Wacker Owner LLC· 598,410 sq ft · score 83 (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 Cook County Building's energy grade?
Cook County Building scores 61 out of 100 on ENERGY STAR — band C, below median (55–69) — in its 2023 Chicago disclosure. Scores are national percentiles against similar buildings; 75+ qualifies for ENERGY STAR certification.
How much energy does Cook County Building use?
Its 2023 site energy-use intensity was 84.7 kBtu/ft² (169.4 kBtu/ft² source) across 638,592 sq ft, including 8,602,771 kWh of electricity and 247,399 therms of natural gas.
What are Cook County Building's carbon emissions?
Cook County Building reported 5,421 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions (8.5 kgCO₂e/ft²) for 2023.
Where is Cook County Building?
Cook County Building is at 118 N. Clark St., in Chicago, Illinois 60602. Its coordinates are 41.80792, -87.59069 (latitude, longitude), as published in the Chicago Energy Benchmarking file.
How big is Cook County Building and when was it built?
Cook County Building has 638,592 sq ft of gross floor area, as reported in its 2023 disclosure. The disclosure lists 1906 as its year built. It is classed as office.
Is Cook County Building 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, “Cook County Building, Chicago, Illinois — 2023 benchmarking disclosure”, https://buildingcensus.com/buildings/chicago/cook-county-building-0b71d82a (data as of October 2, 2026).