Harold Washington College
College/University in Chicago, IL · 30 East Lake Street · 60601
At a glance
Harold Washington College is a 345,300-square-foot college/university building at 30 East Lake Street in Chicago, Illinois, built in 1983. In its 2023 Chicago benchmarking disclosure it reported a site energy-use intensity of 45.7 kBtu/ft² and 2,019 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions.
Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance · reporting year 2023
Benchmarking record
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ENERGY STAR score | — |
| Site EUI | 45.7 kBtu/ft² |
| Source EUI | 122.2 kBtu/ft² |
| GHG emissions | 2,019 tCO₂e |
| GHG intensity | 5.8 kgCO₂e/ft² |
| Electricity | 4,292,590 kWh |
| Natural gas | 11,421 therms |
| Water use | 532 kgal |
| Gross floor area | 345,300 sq ft |
| Source record | chicago:101980:2023 |
The disclosure history
Year over year
| Year | Score | Δ | Site EUI | GHG emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023latest | — | 45.7 kBtu/ft² | 2,019 tCO₂e | |
| 2022 | — | — | — | |
| 2021 | — | — | — | |
| 2020 | — | 47.2 kBtu/ft² | 2,430 tCO₂e | |
| 2019 | — | — | — | |
| 2018 | — | 55.0 kBtu/ft² | 2,987 tCO₂e | |
| 2017 | — | 51.5 kBtu/ft² | 3,146 tCO₂e | |
| 2016 | — | 52.6 kBtu/ft² | 3,217 tCO₂e | |
| 2015 | — | 57.5 kBtu/ft² | 3,704 tCO₂e | |
| 2014 | — | 422.0 kBtu/ft² | 10,456 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.
Own or manage this building? Claim it to correct the record and get compliance alerts.
Location
- Address
- 30 East Lake Street
- City
- Chicago
- State
- Illinois
- ZIP
- 60601
- Coordinates
- 41.79874, -87.60528
Within ~1 km
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See also: most efficient in Chicago · biggest emitters
How does Harold Washington College compare with other college/university buildings in Chicago?
The latest disclosures cover 92 college/university buildings in Chicago, out of 3,852 buildings citywide. Its site EUI of 45.7 kBtu/ft² is about half of the average of 96.2 kBtu/ft² — it uses less energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 5.8 kgCO₂e/ft² is about 34% below the group average of 8.9 kgCO₂e/ft².
At 345,300 sq ft, it is about 23% above the average floor area of 280,683 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 1983, 13 years later than the group's average year built (1970). 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 Harold Washington College's energy performance changed over time?
BuildingCensus holds 10 Chicago disclosures for Harold Washington College, covering report years 2014–2023. Site EUI moved from 422.0 kBtu/ft² (2014) to 45.7 kBtu/ft² (2023), a 89% decrease. Reported emissions went from 10,456 tCO₂e to 2,019 tCO₂e over the same span (down 81%).
What does a site EUI of 45.7 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. Harold Washington College's 45.7 kBtu/ft² across 345,300 sq ft works out to about 15.8 billion Btu (4,625 MWh-equivalent) in 2023. Its source EUI of 122.2 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 4,292,590 kWh of electricity, 11,421 therms of natural gas and 532 thousand gallons of water for the year.
Which law requires Harold Washington College to report its energy use?
Harold Washington College 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:101980:2023). Covered buildings that fail to benchmark and report face fines of up to $100 plus $25 per day of violation under the ordinance.
More college/university buildings in Chicago
- Corboy Law Center-ID# 101971· 306,560 sq ft · EUI 81.6 kBtu/ft²
- Illinois Institute of Technology- DTC· 284,000 sq ft · EUI 47.2 kBtu/ft²
- MacLean Center· 237,256 sq ft · EUI 46.9 kBtu/ft²
- 8602, 710 Lake Shore Dr· 236,060 sq ft · EUI 167.2 kBtu/ft²
- Alice B. Sharp Building· 227,736 sq ft · EUI 91.0 kBtu/ft²
- Gleacher Center· 214,684 sq ft · EUI 70.4 kBtu/ft²
- College/University buildings in Chicago· 92 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 Harold Washington College's energy grade?
Harold Washington College did not report an ENERGY STAR score in its 2023 disclosure, but its site energy-use intensity was 45.7 kBtu/ft².
How much energy does Harold Washington College use?
Its 2023 site energy-use intensity was 45.7 kBtu/ft² (122.2 kBtu/ft² source) across 345,300 sq ft, including 4,292,590 kWh of electricity and 11,421 therms of natural gas.
What are Harold Washington College's carbon emissions?
Harold Washington College reported 2,019 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions (5.8 kgCO₂e/ft²) for 2023.
Where is Harold Washington College?
Harold Washington College is at 30 East Lake Street, in Chicago, Illinois 60601. Its coordinates are 41.79874, -87.60528 (latitude, longitude), as published in the Chicago Energy Benchmarking file.
How big is Harold Washington College and when was it built?
Harold Washington College has 345,300 sq ft of gross floor area, as reported in its 2023 disclosure. The disclosure lists 1983 as its year built. It is classed as college/university.
Is Harold Washington College 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, “Harold Washington College, Chicago, Illinois — 2023 benchmarking disclosure”, https://buildingcensus.com/buildings/chicago/harold-washington-college-6e609dc8 (data as of October 2, 2026).