Rich Sorro Commons

How does Rich Sorro Commons compare with other multifamily buildings in San Francisco?

The latest disclosures cover 192 multifamily buildings in San Francisco, out of 2,509 buildings citywide. Rich Sorro Commons's ENERGY STAR score of 100 compares with an average of 86 across the 129 that report a score; it scores higher than 78% of them. Its site EUI of 29.2 kBtu/ft² is about 16% below the average of 34.9 kBtu/ft² — it uses less energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 1.6 kgCO₂e/ft² is about 17% below the group average of 1.9 kgCO₂e/ft².

At 207,910 sq ft, it is roughly in line with the average floor area of 191,699 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 2002, 16 years later than the group's average year built (1986). Across all 24 jurisdictions BuildingCensus covers, the 238 multifamily buildings average an ENERGY STAR score of 86 and a site EUI of 34.8 kBtu/ft².

How has Rich Sorro Commons's energy performance changed over time?

BuildingCensus holds 8 San Francisco disclosures for Rich Sorro Commons, covering report years 2018–2025. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 97 in 2022 to 100 in 2025 (+3 points). Site EUI moved from 33.7 kBtu/ft² (2020) to 29.2 kBtu/ft² (2025), a 13% decrease. Reported emissions went from 401 tCO₂e to 328 tCO₂e over the same span (down 18%).

What does an ENERGY STAR score of 100 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: 100 is the top of the scale. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 100 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. Rich Sorro Commons's 29.2 kBtu/ft² across 207,910 sq ft works out to about 6.1 billion Btu (1,779 MWh-equivalent) in 2025. Its source EUI of 42.7 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 421,812 kWh of electricity and 46,243 therms of natural gas for the year.

Which law requires Rich Sorro Commons to report its energy use?

Rich Sorro Commons 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:8706/003:2025). San Francisco's ordinance requires annual benchmarking for commercial buildings over 10,000 sq ft, with administrative penalties for buildings that fail to report.