170 COLUMBUS AVE
Commercial in San Francisco, CA · 94133
At a glance
170 COLUMBUS AVE is a 76,431-square-foot commercial building in San Francisco, California, built in 1985. In its 2025 San Francisco benchmarking disclosure it reported an ENERGY STAR score of 91 out of 100 (grade A), a site energy-use intensity of 30.0 kBtu/ft² and 128 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions. That score is higher than 63% of the 790 scored commercial buildings in San Francisco.
SF Environment Code Chapter 20 · reporting year 2025
Benchmarking record
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ENERGY STAR score | 91 (band A) |
| Site EUI | 30.0 kBtu/ft² |
| Source EUI | 68.2 kBtu/ft² |
| GHG emissions | 128 tCO₂e |
| GHG intensity | 1.7 kgCO₂e/ft² |
| Electricity | 469,962 kWh |
| Natural gas | 6,910 therms |
| Gross floor area | 76,431 sq ft |
| Source record | sf:0176/016:2025 |
The disclosure history
Year over year
| Year | Score | Δ | Site EUI | GHG emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025latest | 91 | -3 | 30.0 kBtu/ft² | 128 tCO₂e |
| 2024 | 94 | +1 | 27.0 kBtu/ft² | 131 tCO₂e |
| 2023 | 93 | +1 | 30.6 kBtu/ft² | 154 tCO₂e |
| 2022 | 92 | 25.8 kBtu/ft² | 129 tCO₂e | |
| 2021 | — | 31.1 kBtu/ft² | 138 tCO₂e | |
| 2020 | — | 41.2 kBtu/ft² | 194 tCO₂e | |
| 2019 | 74 | +3 | 42.8 kBtu/ft² | 216 tCO₂e |
| 2018 | 71 | -1 | 44.5 kBtu/ft² | 218 tCO₂e |
| 2017 | 72 | +9 | 58.0 kBtu/ft² | 302 tCO₂e |
| 2016 | 63 | +6 | 67.5 kBtu/ft² | 378 tCO₂e |
| 2015 | 57 | -7 | 79.8 kBtu/ft² | 414 tCO₂e |
| 2014 | 64 | -16 | 71.1 kBtu/ft² | 371 tCO₂e |
| 2013 | 80 | -1 | 57.5 kBtu/ft² | 316 tCO₂e |
| 2012 | 81 | +2 | 57.8 kBtu/ft² | 316 tCO₂e |
| 2011 | 79 | 61.1 kBtu/ft² | 317 tCO₂e |
Compliance context
SF Environment Code Chapter 20
San Francisco's ordinance requires annual benchmarking for commercial buildings over 10,000 sq ft, with administrative penalties for buildings that fail to report.
Ownership
No owning organisation shown. Names of private individuals in the disclosure are not published here.
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Location
- Address
- 170 COLUMBUS AVE
- City
- San Francisco
- State
- California
- ZIP
- 94133
- Coordinates
- 37.79692, -122.40486
Within ~1 km
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See also: most efficient in San Francisco · biggest emitters
How does 170 COLUMBUS AVE compare with other commercial buildings in San Francisco?
The latest disclosures cover 1,683 commercial buildings in San Francisco, out of 2,509 buildings citywide. 170 COLUMBUS AVE's ENERGY STAR score of 91 compares with an average of 78 across the 790 that report a score; it scores higher than 63% of them and lower than 35%. Its site EUI of 30.0 kBtu/ft² is about 39% below the average of 49.2 kBtu/ft² — it uses less energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 1.7 kgCO₂e/ft² is about 38% below the group average of 2.7 kgCO₂e/ft².
At 76,431 sq ft, it is about 29% below the average floor area of 107,408 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 1985, 44 years later than the group's average year built (1941). Across all 24 jurisdictions BuildingCensus covers, the 2,307 commercial buildings average an ENERGY STAR score of 76 and a site EUI of 51.3 kBtu/ft².
How has 170 COLUMBUS AVE's energy performance changed over time?
BuildingCensus holds 15 San Francisco disclosures for 170 COLUMBUS AVE, covering report years 2011–2025. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 79 in 2011 to 91 in 2025 (+12 points); its best year on file was 2024, at 94. Site EUI moved from 61.1 kBtu/ft² (2011) to 30.0 kBtu/ft² (2025), a 51% decrease. Reported emissions went from 317 tCO₂e to 128 tCO₂e over the same span (down 59%).
What does an ENERGY STAR score of 91 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 91 means the building performs better than about 91% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 91 falls in band A — high performer (85–100). Scores of 75 or higher meet the threshold for ENERGY STAR certification; certification itself is a separate, verified application that the disclosure does not record. In San Francisco, 73% 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. 170 COLUMBUS AVE's 30.0 kBtu/ft² across 76,431 sq ft works out to about 2.3 billion Btu (672 MWh-equivalent) in 2025. Its source EUI of 68.2 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 469,962 kWh of electricity and 6,910 therms of natural gas for the year.
Which law requires 170 COLUMBUS AVE to report its energy use?
170 COLUMBUS AVE reports under SF Environment Code Chapter 20, the legal basis of San Francisco's Existing Buildings Energy Performance Ordinance, which publishes each covered building's annual benchmarking results. The record shown here is the report-year 2025 disclosure (source record sf:0176/016:2025). San Francisco's ordinance requires annual benchmarking for commercial buildings over 10,000 sq ft, with administrative penalties for buildings that fail to report.
More commercial buildings in San Francisco
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Frequently asked questions
What is 170 COLUMBUS AVE's energy grade?
170 COLUMBUS AVE scores 91 out of 100 on ENERGY STAR — band A, high performer (85–100) — in its 2025 San Francisco disclosure. Scores are national percentiles against similar buildings; 75+ qualifies for ENERGY STAR certification.
How much energy does 170 COLUMBUS AVE use?
Its 2025 site energy-use intensity was 30.0 kBtu/ft² (68.2 kBtu/ft² source) across 76,431 sq ft, including 469,962 kWh of electricity and 6,910 therms of natural gas.
What are 170 COLUMBUS AVE's carbon emissions?
170 COLUMBUS AVE reported 128 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions (1.7 kgCO₂e/ft²) for 2025.
Where is 170 COLUMBUS AVE?
170 COLUMBUS AVE is in San Francisco, California 94133. Its coordinates are 37.79692, -122.40486 (latitude, longitude), as published in the Existing Buildings Energy Performance Ordinance file.
How big is 170 COLUMBUS AVE and when was it built?
170 COLUMBUS AVE has 76,431 sq ft of gross floor area, as reported in its 2025 disclosure. The disclosure lists 1985 as its year built. It is classed as commercial.
Is 170 COLUMBUS AVE covered by SF Environment Code Chapter 20?
Yes — it appears in the 2025 Existing Buildings Energy Performance Ordinance disclosure, which lists the buildings reporting under SF Environment Code Chapter 20.
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About this data
Source: Existing Buildings Energy Performance Ordinance (SF Environment Code Chapter 20), as published October 2, 2026. See the methodology for how records are matched, cleaned and scored.
Cite as: BuildingCensus, “170 COLUMBUS AVE, San Francisco, California — 2025 benchmarking disclosure”, https://buildingcensus.com/buildings/san-francisco/170-columbus-ave-0b9b66c0 (data as of October 2, 2026).