Goodwill Building

How does Goodwill Building compare with other distribution center buildings in Seattle?

The latest disclosures cover 38 distribution center buildings in Seattle, out of 3,871 buildings citywide. Goodwill Building's ENERGY STAR score of 61 compares with an average of 62 across the 33 that report a score; it scores higher than 39% of them and lower than 58%. Its site EUI of 11.5 kBtu/ft² is about 58% below the average of 27.3 kBtu/ft² — it uses less energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 0.1 kgCO₂e/ft² is about 88% below the group average of 0.6 kgCO₂e/ft².

At 111,908 sq ft, it is about 79% above the average floor area of 62,568 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 1987, 20 years later than the group's average year built (1968). Across all 24 jurisdictions BuildingCensus covers, the 4,082 distribution center buildings average an ENERGY STAR score of 65 and a site EUI of 24.2 kBtu/ft².

How has Goodwill Building's energy performance changed over time?

BuildingCensus holds 11 Seattle disclosures for Goodwill Building, covering report years 2015–2025. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 69 in 2015 to 61 in 2025 (-8 points); its best year on file was 2016, at 87. Site EUI moved from 20.7 kBtu/ft² (2015) to 11.5 kBtu/ft² (2025), a 44% decrease. Reported emissions went from 42 tCO₂e to 7 tCO₂e over the same span (down 82%).

What does an ENERGY STAR score of 61 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 61 means the building performs better than about 61% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 61 falls in band C — below median (55–69). It sits 14 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. Goodwill Building's 11.5 kBtu/ft² across 111,908 sq ft works out to about 1.3 billion Btu (377 MWh-equivalent) in 2025. Its source EUI of 32.1 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 376,471 kWh of electricity for the year.

Which law requires Goodwill Building to report its energy use?

Goodwill Building 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:729:2025). 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.