East Howe Steps

How does East Howe Steps compare with other multifamily housing buildings in Seattle?

The latest disclosures cover 1,971 multifamily housing buildings in Seattle, out of 3,871 buildings citywide. East Howe Steps's ENERGY STAR score of 75 compares with an average of 83 across the 1,652 that report a score; it scores higher than 23% of them and lower than 77%. Its site EUI of 40.2 kBtu/ft² is about 15% above the average of 34.9 kBtu/ft² — it uses more energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 0.9 kgCO₂e/ft² is about 26% above the group average of 0.7 kgCO₂e/ft².

At 106,604 sq ft, it is about 23% above the average floor area of 86,468 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 2016, 33 years later than the group's average year built (1983). 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 East Howe Steps's energy performance changed over time?

BuildingCensus holds 8 Seattle disclosures for East Howe Steps, covering report years 2018–2025. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 92 in 2018 to 75 in 2025 (-17 points); its best year on file was 2018, at 92. Site EUI moved from 34.1 kBtu/ft² (2018) to 40.2 kBtu/ft² (2025), an 18% increase. Reported emissions went from 52 tCO₂e to 71 tCO₂e over the same span (up 36%).

What does an ENERGY STAR score of 75 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 75 means the building performs better than about 75% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 75 falls in band B — above median (70–84). 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 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. East Howe Steps's 40.2 kBtu/ft² across 106,604 sq ft works out to about 4.3 billion Btu (1,256 MWh-equivalent) in 2025. Its source EUI of 88.4 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 617,209 kWh of electricity and 11,033 therms of natural gas for the year.

Which law requires East Howe Steps to report its energy use?

East Howe Steps 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:50247:2025). 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.