Costco 4th Ave S

How does Costco 4th Ave S compare with other supermarket/grocery store buildings in Seattle?

The latest disclosures cover 41 supermarket/grocery store buildings in Seattle, out of 3,871 buildings citywide. Costco 4th Ave S's ENERGY STAR score of 65 compares with an average of 70 across the 35 that report a score; it scores higher than 31% of them and lower than 63%. Its site EUI of 158.2 kBtu/ft² is about 16% below the average of 188.2 kBtu/ft² — it uses less energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 4.0 kgCO₂e/ft² is roughly in line with the group average of 4.2 kgCO₂e/ft².

At 158,415 sq ft, it is about 195% above the average floor area of 53,722 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 2005, 18 years later than the group's average year built (1987). Across all 24 jurisdictions BuildingCensus covers, the 1,646 supermarket/grocery store buildings average an ENERGY STAR score of 71 and a site EUI of 176.1 kBtu/ft².

How has Costco 4th Ave S's energy performance changed over time?

BuildingCensus holds 11 Seattle disclosures for Costco 4th Ave S, covering report years 2015–2025. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 23 in 2015 to 65 in 2025 (+42 points); its best year on file was 2023, at 92. Site EUI moved from 147.5 kBtu/ft² (2015) to 158.2 kBtu/ft² (2025), an 7% increase. Reported emissions went from 454 tCO₂e to 633 tCO₂e over the same span (up 39%).

What does an ENERGY STAR score of 65 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 65 means the building performs better than about 65% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 65 falls in band C — below median (55–69). It sits 10 points below 75, the threshold for ENERGY STAR certification. In Seattle, 69% 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. Costco 4th Ave S's 158.2 kBtu/ft² across 158,415 sq ft works out to about 25.1 billion Btu (7,345 MWh-equivalent) in 2025. Its source EUI of 323.9 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 4,186,820 kWh of electricity and 107,714 therms of natural gas for the year.

Which law requires Costco 4th Ave S to report its energy use?

Costco 4th Ave S reports under the Seattle Energy Benchmarking Ordinance (SMC 22.920), the legal basis of Seattle's Building Energy Benchmarking program, which publishes each covered building's annual benchmarking results. The record shown here is the report-year 2025 disclosure (source record seattle:464:2025). Seattle's Building Emissions Performance Standard (adopted 2023) applies to buildings over 20,000 sq ft: benchmarking verification is due 2027–2030 and initial emissions targets 2031–2035, reaching net zero by 2041–2050, with fines for non-compliance.