Wells Place Apartments (wl272)
Multifamily Housing in Chicago, IL · 839 S Wells St · 60607
At a glance
Wells Place Apartments (wl272) is a 95,892-square-foot multifamily housing building at 839 S Wells St in Chicago, Illinois, built in 2016. In its 2023 Chicago benchmarking disclosure it reported an ENERGY STAR score of 34 out of 100 (grade D), a site energy-use intensity of 92.9 kBtu/ft² and 652 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions. That score is higher than 18% of the 1,472 scored multifamily housing buildings in Chicago.
Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance · reporting year 2023
Benchmarking record
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ENERGY STAR score | 34 (band D) |
| Site EUI | 92.9 kBtu/ft² |
| Source EUI | 138.0 kBtu/ft² |
| GHG emissions | 652 tCO₂e |
| GHG intensity | 6.8 kgCO₂e/ft² |
| Electricity | 650,430 kWh |
| Natural gas | 66,884 therms |
| Water use | 2,662 kgal |
| Gross floor area | 95,892 sq ft |
| Source record | chicago:255006:2023 |
The disclosure history
Year over year
| Year | Score | Δ | Site EUI | GHG emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023latest | 34 | -59 | 92.9 kBtu/ft² | 652 tCO₂e |
| 2022 | 93 | +10 | 52.3 kBtu/ft² | 467 tCO₂e |
| 2021 | 83 | -12 | 54.8 kBtu/ft² | 529 tCO₂e |
| 2020 | 95 | 51.9 kBtu/ft² | 469 tCO₂e | |
| 2019 | — | — | — | |
| 2018 | — | — | — |
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
- 839 S Wells St
- City
- Chicago
- State
- Illinois
- ZIP
- 60607
- Coordinates
- 41.88067, -87.62674
Within ~1 km
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See also: most efficient in Chicago · biggest emitters
How does Wells Place Apartments (wl272) 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. Wells Place Apartments (wl272)'s ENERGY STAR score of 34 compares with an average of 62 across the 1,472 that report a score; it scores higher than 18% of them and lower than 82%. Its site EUI of 92.9 kBtu/ft² is about 29% above the average of 72.0 kBtu/ft² — it uses more energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 6.8 kgCO₂e/ft² is about 17% above the group average of 5.8 kgCO₂e/ft².
At 95,892 sq ft, it is about half of the average floor area of 206,097 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 2016, 45 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 Wells Place Apartments (wl272)'s energy performance changed over time?
BuildingCensus holds 6 Chicago disclosures for Wells Place Apartments (wl272), covering report years 2018–2023. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 95 in 2020 to 34 in 2023 (-61 points); its best year on file was 2020, at 95. Site EUI moved from 51.9 kBtu/ft² (2020) to 92.9 kBtu/ft² (2023), an 79% increase. Reported emissions went from 469 tCO₂e to 652 tCO₂e over the same span (up 39%).
What does an ENERGY STAR score of 34 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 34 means the building performs better than about 34% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 34 falls in band D — lowest band (1–54). It sits 41 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. Wells Place Apartments (wl272)'s 92.9 kBtu/ft² across 95,892 sq ft works out to about 8.9 billion Btu (2,611 MWh-equivalent) in 2023. Its source EUI of 138.0 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 650,430 kWh of electricity, 66,884 therms of natural gas and 2,662 thousand gallons of water for the year.
Which law requires Wells Place Apartments (wl272) to report its energy use?
Wells Place Apartments (wl272) 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:255006:2023). Covered buildings that fail to benchmark and report face fines of up to $100 plus $25 per day of violation under the ordinance.
More multifamily housing buildings in Chicago
- Long Life Apartments· 95,888 sq ft · score 53 (D)
- Greenwood Park Apartments· 95,691 sq ft · score 22 (D)
- The Mayfair· 95,500 sq ft · score 18 (D)
- 1418 North Lake Shore Drive Condominium Association· 95,475 sq ft · score 34 (D)
- Walsh Park Apartments· 95,110 sq ft · score 74 (B)
- Good Shepherd Land & Housing Dev. Corp.· 95,062 sq ft · score 24 (D)
- Multifamily Housing buildings in Chicago· 1,515 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 Wells Place Apartments (wl272)'s energy grade?
Wells Place Apartments (wl272) scores 34 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 Wells Place Apartments (wl272) use?
Its 2023 site energy-use intensity was 92.9 kBtu/ft² (138.0 kBtu/ft² source) across 95,892 sq ft, including 650,430 kWh of electricity and 66,884 therms of natural gas.
What are Wells Place Apartments (wl272)'s carbon emissions?
Wells Place Apartments (wl272) reported 652 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions (6.8 kgCO₂e/ft²) for 2023.
Where is Wells Place Apartments (wl272)?
Wells Place Apartments (wl272) is at 839 S Wells St, in Chicago, Illinois 60607. Its coordinates are 41.88067, -87.62674 (latitude, longitude), as published in the Chicago Energy Benchmarking file.
How big is Wells Place Apartments (wl272) and when was it built?
Wells Place Apartments (wl272) has 95,892 sq ft of gross floor area, as reported in its 2023 disclosure. The disclosure lists 2016 as its year built. It is classed as multifamily housing.
Is Wells Place Apartments (wl272) 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, “Wells Place Apartments (wl272), Chicago, Illinois — 2023 benchmarking disclosure”, https://buildingcensus.com/buildings/chicago/wells-place-apartments-wl272-c237c91b (data as of October 2, 2026).