Optima Signature

How does Optima Signature compare with other multifamily housing buildings in Chicago?

The latest disclosures cover 1,515 multifamily housing buildings in Chicago, out of 3,852 buildings citywide. Optima Signature's ENERGY STAR score of 52 compares with an average of 62 across the 1,472 that report a score; it scores higher than 34% of them and lower than 65%. Its site EUI of 48.0 kBtu/ft² is about 33% below the average of 72.0 kBtu/ft² — it uses less energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 5.3 kgCO₂e/ft² is roughly in line with the group average of 5.8 kgCO₂e/ft².

At 872,200 sq ft, it is about 323% above the average floor area of 206,097 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 2017, 46 years later than the group's average year built (1971). Across all 24 jurisdictions BuildingCensus covers, the 59,945 multifamily housing buildings average an ENERGY STAR score of 70 and a site EUI of 59.0 kBtu/ft².

How has Optima Signature's energy performance changed over time?

BuildingCensus holds 6 Chicago disclosures for Optima Signature, covering report years 2018–2023. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 89 in 2018 to 52 in 2023 (-37 points); its best year on file was 2019, at 93. Site EUI moved from 41.5 kBtu/ft² (2018) to 48.0 kBtu/ft² (2023), an 16% increase. Reported emissions went from 4,385 tCO₂e to 4,605 tCO₂e over the same span (up 5%).

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. Optima Signature's 48.0 kBtu/ft² across 872,200 sq ft works out to about 41.9 billion Btu (12,270 MWh-equivalent) in 2023. Its source EUI of 105.5 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 8,039,358 kWh of electricity and 144,441 therms of natural gas for the year.

Which law requires Optima Signature to report its energy use?

Optima Signature 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:254536:2023). Covered buildings that fail to benchmark and report face fines of up to $100 plus $25 per day of violation under the ordinance.