At a glance
Foster Hall is a 28,067-square-foot office building at 1130 East 59th Street in Chicago, Illinois, built in 1893. In its 2023 Chicago benchmarking disclosure it reported an ENERGY STAR score of 52 out of 100 (grade D), a site energy-use intensity of 98.5 kBtu/ft² and 222 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions. That score is higher than 18% of the 320 scored office buildings in Chicago.
Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance · reporting year 2023
Benchmarking record
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ENERGY STAR score | 52 (band D) |
| Site EUI | 98.5 kBtu/ft² |
| Source EUI | 147.9 kBtu/ft² |
| GHG emissions | 222 tCO₂e |
| GHG intensity | 7.9 kgCO₂e/ft² |
| Electricity | 151,535 kWh |
| Water use | 906 kgal |
| Gross floor area | 28,067 sq ft |
| Source record | chicago:252057:2023 |
The disclosure history
Year over year
| Year | Score | Δ | Site EUI | GHG emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023latest | 52 | 98.5 kBtu/ft² | 222 tCO₂e | |
| 2022 | — | 87.8 kBtu/ft² | 477 tCO₂e | |
| 2021 | — | 80.2 kBtu/ft² | 452 tCO₂e | |
| 2020 | — | 79.7 kBtu/ft² | 459 tCO₂e | |
| 2019 | — | 108.3 kBtu/ft² | 1,573 tCO₂e | |
| 2018 | — | 88.8 kBtu/ft² | 1,439 tCO₂e | |
| 2017 | — | 83.1 kBtu/ft² | 1,457 tCO₂e | |
| 2016 | — | 84.9 kBtu/ft² | 1,525 tCO₂e | |
| 2015 | — | 87.4 kBtu/ft² | 1,649 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
- 1130 East 59th Street
- City
- Chicago
- State
- Illinois
- ZIP
- 60637
- Coordinates
- 41.88431, -87.64503
Within ~1 km
Nearby benchmarked buildings
- 10/30 South Wackerscore 72
Office · 3,014,304 sq ft
- 320 South Canalscore —
Office · 1,797,756 sq ft
- 540 West Madisonscore 73
Financial Office · 1,222,281 sq ft
- 222 North LaSallescore 83
Office · 1,217,630 sq ft
- 321 N. Clark Property, LLCscore 87
Office · 981,053 sq ft
- Skybridge CAscore —
Building · 875,999 sq ft
See also: most efficient in Chicago · biggest emitters
How does Foster Hall compare with other office buildings in Chicago?
The latest disclosures cover 387 office buildings in Chicago, out of 3,852 buildings citywide. Foster Hall's ENERGY STAR score of 52 compares with an average of 69 across the 320 that report a score; it scores higher than 18% of them and lower than 82%. Its site EUI of 98.5 kBtu/ft² is about 40% 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 7.9 kgCO₂e/ft² is roughly in line with the group average of 7.5 kgCO₂e/ft².
At 28,067 sq ft, it is about 94% below the average floor area of 488,124 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 1893, 63 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 Foster Hall's energy performance changed over time?
BuildingCensus holds 9 Chicago disclosures for Foster Hall, covering report years 2015–2023. Site EUI moved from 87.4 kBtu/ft² (2015) to 98.5 kBtu/ft² (2023), an 13% increase. Reported emissions went from 1,649 tCO₂e to 222 tCO₂e over the same span (down 87%).
What does an ENERGY STAR score of 52 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 52 means the building performs better than about 52% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 52 falls in band D — lowest band (1–54). It sits 23 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. Foster Hall's 98.5 kBtu/ft² across 28,067 sq ft works out to about 2.8 billion Btu (810 MWh-equivalent) in 2023. Its source EUI of 147.9 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 151,535 kWh of electricity and 906 thousand gallons of water for the year.
Which law requires Foster Hall to report its energy use?
Foster Hall 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:252057:2023). 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
Frequently asked questions
What is Foster Hall's energy grade?
Foster Hall scores 52 out of 100 on ENERGY STAR — band D, lowest band (1–54) — in its 2023 Chicago disclosure. Scores are national percentiles against similar buildings; 75+ qualifies for ENERGY STAR certification.
How much energy does Foster Hall use?
Its 2023 site energy-use intensity was 98.5 kBtu/ft² (147.9 kBtu/ft² source) across 28,067 sq ft, including 151,535 kWh of electricity.
What are Foster Hall's carbon emissions?
Foster Hall reported 222 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions (7.9 kgCO₂e/ft²) for 2023.
Where is Foster Hall?
Foster Hall is at 1130 East 59th Street, in Chicago, Illinois 60637. Its coordinates are 41.88431, -87.64503 (latitude, longitude), as published in the Chicago Energy Benchmarking file.
How big is Foster Hall and when was it built?
Foster Hall has 28,067 sq ft of gross floor area, as reported in its 2023 disclosure. The disclosure lists 1893 as its year built. It is classed as office.
Is Foster Hall 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, “Foster Hall, Chicago, Illinois — 2023 benchmarking disclosure”, https://buildingcensus.com/buildings/chicago/foster-hall-cfdb5e4a (data as of October 2, 2026).