Safeway Store # 1551

How does Safeway Store # 1551 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. Safeway Store # 1551'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 286.3 kBtu/ft² is about 52% above the average of 188.2 kBtu/ft² — it uses more energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 8.5 kgCO₂e/ft² is about twice the group average of 4.2 kgCO₂e/ft².

At 44,739 sq ft, it is about 17% below the average floor area of 53,722 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 1998, 11 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 Safeway Store # 1551's energy performance changed over time?

BuildingCensus holds 11 Seattle disclosures for Safeway Store # 1551, covering report years 2015–2025. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 18 in 2015 to 65 in 2025 (+47 points); its best year on file was 2023, at 67. Site EUI moved from 325.1 kBtu/ft² (2015) to 286.3 kBtu/ft² (2025), a 12% decrease. Reported emissions went from 378 tCO₂e to 380 tCO₂e over the same span (up 1%).

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. Safeway Store # 1551's 286.3 kBtu/ft² across 44,739 sq ft works out to about 12.8 billion Btu (3,754 MWh-equivalent) in 2025. Its source EUI of 547.9 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 1,853,170 kWh of electricity and 64,848 therms of natural gas for the year.

Which law requires Safeway Store # 1551 to report its energy use?

Safeway Store # 1551 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:25914:2025). 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.