The Environmental Protection Agency awarded 

the first ENERGY STAR® to a building in 1999, 

an innovation that has helped bring thousands of organizations in the commercial 

building marketplace to the forefront of energy efficiency and climate stewardship. 

The evolution of ENERGY STAR for buildings is a compelling story of eliminating 

barriers, driving demand, and delivering excellence. Celebrate a decade of ENERGY 

STAR buildings with this historical retrospective of how it all began, where we are 

today, and a glimpse of the exciting future that lies ahead.

CELEBRATING A DECADE OF 

ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 2

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

A Common Story, A Revolutionary Solution

The new director of business administration for a local 

school district furrowed his brow as he took his first look at 

his district’s budget. Officials in the district predicted that 

rising fuel costs would push annual energy expenditures 

upward by more than 20%. There was no way, with 

increasing costs for textbooks, supplies, and classroom 

technology improvements, that his school district could 

afford an energy bill of that size. Together with their energy 

service provider, they found help from the Environmental 

Protection Agency’s (EPA) ENERGY STAR program. 

Through ENERGY STAR, the district official soon discovered 

that his school buildings were significantly less energy 

efficient than their peers in the United States and were 

adding unnecessary costs to that huge energy bill. As district 

officials evaluated performance building-by-building in the 

portfolio, they found ways to take action and save energy at 

the whole building level, address poorly operating systems, 

and make necessary capital investments. After two years, 

the district had spent $150,000 on capital upgrades but 

its energy costs, rather than rising to the predicted $4.5 

million, came in at $3 million. Within another two years, 

the school district would become the first in the country to 

be recognized by EPA for reducing overall energy use by 40 

percent.

This is the true story of Council Rock School District in 

Newtown, Pennsylvania. It’s a common story of a common 

problem. EPA’s ENERGY STAR program offers a powerful 

solution that has revolutionized energy efficiency in the 

commercial marketplace. 

Dawn of the EPA Partnership Program

The 1990s marked an important shift in the United States 

toward greater collaboration on pollution prevention. It was 

a time when both business leaders and environmentalists 

recognized that economic progress and environmental 

protection can, and must, go hand-in-hand. It was an era of 

market incentives and flexible, common-sense, cost-effective 

strategies. EPA’s decision to approach the momentous 

problem of climate change through a voluntary, public/

private energy efficiency partnership program reflected a 

new generation of environmental protection. This innovative 

approach took shape in 1991 under the banner of EPA’s 

Green Lights program.

Through Green Lights, EPA promoted the use of efficient 

lighting systems in commercial buildings in situations where 

1991 1992 1993 1994 1995

EPA introduces the Green 

Lights Program, a partnership 

program designed to promote 

efficient lighting systems in 

commercial and industrial 

buildings.

EPA introduces the first 

ENERGY STAR labeled

products, including 

personal computers and 

monitors.

EPA launches ENERGY STAR 

labeled new homes that are 

30 percent more efficient 

than the model energy code.

Green Lights merges with ENERGY 

STAR Buildings, a program to help 

businesses simultaneously improve 

their energy performance and increase 

their bottom line. 

EPA pilots the ENERGY 

STAR Buildings program 

with 23 building owners 

to showcase the ENERGY 

STAR approach.

ENERGY STAR partners in 

the commercial building 

marketplace have helped 

prevent emissions equal 

to the electricity used by 

more than 60 million

American homes per year.
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 3

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

they maintained or improved lighting quality and were also 

profitable. It was a novel idea built around an important 

reality: energy efficient lighting could significantly reduce 

the pollution caused by buildings. But organizations were 

not taking advantage of these investment opportunities 

because they did not have objective information, assessment 

tools, or an understanding of the benefits to their bottom 

line. Green Lights offered tools and resources to overcome 

these barriers to efficiency and profitability.

The foundation of the program was a partnership between 

EPA and public or private organizations, which outlined a 

method for participants to follow, required annual reporting 

of energy savings, and offered a package of technical 

and marketing tools at no cost. The emphasis on the 

commitment to energy efficiency by organizations—not 

just individual buildings—would become one of the key 

attributes and successful elements of the future ENERGY 

STAR program. Other important attributes that would 

carry on from the Green Lights program include assessing 

performance and setting goals, creating and implementing 

action plans, evaluating progress, and recognizing 

achievements.

Whole Building Evolution

With the momentum established by Green Lights, EPA moved 

beyond lighting to capture substantial additional savings 

by improving the energy efficiency of the whole building. 

Through its work with Green Lights participants, EPA realized 

that the real savings lay not just in technologies but in 

the interaction of the various building systems. Modeling 

software had shown that buildings could reduce their energy 

use by 30 percent through efficiency improvements. 

Two dozen showcase buildings were selected to test that 

hypothesis over the course of a year. Measurements were 

taken before and after the trial period, and participating 

organizations used a uniform strategy provided by EPA as 

the basis for improvements. The study results showed that 

despite using the same whole building approach, some 

buildings logged 50 percent savings, while others only 

showed 12 percent. But what did that mean? 

Debut of the Building Benchmark

To interpret the results, EPA needed an objective measure 

by which all buildings could be evaluated. It was obvious 

that saving energy was good, but there was no way to 

objectively compare—or benchmark—the performance of 

one building to another. EPA turned to an existing inventory 

of commercial building energy use available from the 

Department of Energy to develop comparative metrics for 

evaluating performance. 

Using these comparative metrics, program officials realized 

that the “very successful” building that cut its energy use 

in half still had above-average energy use. Even more 

surprising, the “less successful” building with the modest 

12 percent savings was actually performing well above the 

average building. Moreover, the inventory revealed a wide 

distribution of energy performance between the best and 

1999 2000 2001

ENERGY STAR label 

extended to office 

buildings that perform 

in the top 25 percent 

of the market. 

Portfolio Manager, an 

online energy tracking 

and management tool 

for buildings, is released.

ENERGY STAR label extended 

to schools that perform in the 

top 25 percent of the market.

ENERGY STAR label extended 

to supermarkets and grocery 

stores that perform in the top 

25 percent of the market.
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 4

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

worst performers—making a comparative metric even more 

important given such a large spectrum.

The results of the showcase building study represented a 

major turning point that helped EPA transform the view 

of energy use in commercial buildings. It was clear that 

organizations needed to measure energy use in order to 

manage it and to make sense of those measurements 

within an objective context. The results strengthened EPA’s 

position that the business-as-usual approach of estimating 

savings based on calculations—rather than actual energy 

consumption—needed to change. With the global climate 

at risk, damage to the environment caused by greenhouse 

gas emissions was not going to be prevented by theoretical 

predictions of how a building was intended to operate, but 

rather by real-world reductions in energy use. 

From Green Lights to ENERGY STAR

As the Green Lights program began to eliminate barriers and 

deliver results, EPA launched a new generation of pollution 

prevention initiatives that reflected the realities of the 1990s: 

the importance of environmental issues to consumers, the 

increasing cost of energy, and the intensely competitive 

world marketplace. Among these initiatives was ENERGY 

STAR, EPA’s flagship voluntary labeling program designed 

to identify and promote energy-efficient products in order to 

reduce greenhouse gas emissions. 

ENERGY STAR labeled products were top performers in terms 

of energy efficiency, without sacrificing performance, quality, 

or cost-effectiveness. After the ENERGY STAR program 

introduced the first labeled product lines—including 

personal computers, monitors, printers, and fax machines—

the Green Lights program evolved into EPA’s new wholebuilding program: ENERGY STAR for Buildings. 

New Tools of the Trade

Consistent with the guiding principles of ENERGY STAR as 

well as the findings of the showcase building study, the 

need for a better way to accurately measure and compare 

the energy performance of buildings resonated with EPA. 

Approaches were introduced, tested, and modified with 

valuable input from the growing network of influential 

ENERGY STAR partners. By 1999, EPA emerged with an 

entirely new method and three new tools to encourage 

and assist organizations in their efforts to reduce carbon 

emissions: 

 • The Portfolio Manager software tool, which would 

become the engine of the ENERGY STAR Buildings 

program, allowed organizations to measure, track, and 

compare the energy use of all of their buildings online 

with just a few clicks using their own private account. 

 • The ENERGY STAR energy performance scale assigned 

a score between 1 and 100, which indicated how 

a building performed relative to similar buildings 

nationwide. The scores were automatically adjusted 

using standardized methods to take into account 

differences in building attributes, operating 

characteristics, and weather variables. 

2001 2002 2003

ENERGY STAR label 

extended to hotels that 

perform in the top 25 

percent of the market.

Nearly 1,100 buildings 

have earned the 

ENERGY STAR label.

ENERGY STAR label 

extended to acute care

hospitals that perform in 

the top 25 percent of the 

market.
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 5

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

 • The ENERGY STAR label provided recognition from EPA 

for those buildings that scored a 75 or higher, meaning 

that they performed better than 75 percent of similar 

buildings nationwide. Certifications of performance and 

adherence to indoor air quality standards were also 

required to earn the ENERGY STAR label. 

These new tools marked a fundamental shift in how the 

market came to define energy efficient buildings. Most 

people were still relying on more complex approaches, one 

of which was to feed energy bills into complicated building 

simulation models that would calibrate the bills based on 

other factors. They were expensive and difficult to use, most 

people did not understand how they worked, and there was 

no standardization across organizations. A less expensive 

and equally well-intentioned method was to perform an 

upgrade, install technology, and then consider the building 

high-performing. Yet research showed that neither the age 

of a building nor the presence of technologies alone were 

good indicators of performance.

With the debut of its three new tools, EPA introduced 

an entirely new way of testing efficiency and defining 

performance. This new approach allowed organizations to 

gauge the performance of all of their buildings easily and at 

low cost, prioritize investment opportunities, learn from the 

best, and verify the savings of their actions.

An ENERGY STAR is Born

With nearly 5 million commercial buildings in the United 

States, introducing this new energy efficiency framework 

required a sound strategy, a reasoned approach, and the 

availability of information to provide relevant performance 

benchmarks. A look at the carbon picture (Fig. 1) made 

office buildings the obvious place to start; they emit the 

greatest amount of greenhouse gas emissions among the 

various types of commercial buildings and therefore offer 

the greatest opportunity for greenhouse gas reductions. 

However, with diverse owner/operator/occupant 

relationships, the office building market presented unique 

challenges. 

By segmenting the market and understanding the business 

models of the organizations it was trying to reach, EPA 

2004 2005

Almost 2,000

buildings across the 

U.S. have earned the 

ENERGY STAR. 

ENERGY STAR Challenge is 

announced: EPA challenges 

US organizations to improve 

the energy efficiency of 

buildings at least 10 percent. 

Almost 1,400 buildings have 

earned the ENERGY STAR 

for superior energy 

performance.

ENERGY STAR recognition 

extended to commercial 

new construction with the 

“Designed to Earn the 

ENERGY STAR” designation.

Fig. 1.

Carbon 

Emissions 

by building type

Office

Public Safety

Public Assembly

Shopping 

Malls

Houses of 

Worship

Service

Warehouse 

& Storage Other Education

Food 

Sales

Food Service

Lodging

Health Care

Other Retail

ENERGY STAR label extended 

to dormitories, bank branches, 

financial centers, and warehouses that perform in the top 

25 percent of the market. 
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 6

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

was able to create synergies. Transforming the market 

demanded a focus on how energy was important to the 

organization—not just a focus on the buildings themselves. 

Investor-owners in the commercial real estate market began 

to understand how they could not only recoup their energy 

efficiency investments, but also reap financial rewards in the 

form of higher net operating income and asset value, and 

possibly attract and retain tenants with greater ease. 

History was made in January of 1999 when EPA awarded 

the first ENERGY STAR to a 17-year-old, 74,000-square-foot 

municipal office building in San Diego, California. Over the 

following decade, thousands of buildings followed suit, 

and today more office buildings have earned the ENERGY 

STAR than any other building type, resulting in substantial 

greenhouse gas emission reductions.

Early analyses of ENERGY STAR office buildings proved their 

financial and environmental value. Studies documented 

significant direct financial savings from reduced energy 

use and persistent savings from improvements in energy 

performance. At a time of rising energy costs, the presence 

of EPA’s ENERGY STAR on a commercial building was 

increasingly recognized as the hallmark of a fiscally and 

environmentally sound corporate energy management 

strategy. 

EPA was making significant progress with a green building 

approach that was smart from both a financial and pollution 

prevention perspective. The passing of time would confirm 

early studies and reveal that ENERGY STAR labeled buildings 

consistently use, on average, 35 percent less energy than 

their peers and emit 35 percent less carbon dioxide. The 

results began to speak for themselves.

A Decade of Growth

Following EPA’s early success in the office building market, 

the Agency tackled more than a dozen new commercial 

sectors. Over the years, the ENERGY STAR energy 

performance scale was expanded to provide scores for K-12 

schools, supermarkets, hospitals, hotels, retail stores, and 

many other types of buildings (Fig. 2). EPA also established 

energy performance indicators for various manufacturing 

industries, and facilities such as automobile assembly plants 

began to earn the ENERGY STAR label. Early champions, such 

as Hines, Arden Realty, Food Lion, Giant Eagle, JCPenney, 

Marriott, and the Cities of San Diego and Louisville were 

instrumental in the program gaining wider acceptance. 

The transparent, web-based method EPA built to deliver 

the ENERGY STAR energy performance scale has enabled a 

new industry of service and product providers to help deliver 

the program and improve the performance of the market. 

Utilities retrieve and transfer important commercial building 

consumption information. State and local governments, 

energy efficiency program sponsors, and industry groups use 

it to evolve policies, voluntary programs, and frameworks 

that might never before have been possible. 

2006 2007

ENERGY STAR label 

extended to retail 

buildings that perform 

in the top 25 percent 

of the market. 

EPA’s Portfolio Manager 

tool is updated to include 

greenhouse gas emissions

tracking. 

More than 2,500

buildings have 

earned the 

ENERGY STAR. 

ENERGY STAR label extended to auto assembly 

plants that perform in 

the top 25 percent of the 

market.

More than 3,200

buildings have 

earned the 

ENERGY STAR.

ENERGY STAR label extended 

to cement manufacturing 

plants and corn refineries that 

perform in the top 25 percent 

of the market.

ENERGY STAR label 

extended to petroleum 

refineries that perform in 

the top 25 percent of their 

size class.
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 7

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

In 2008, nine years after introducing the ENERGY STAR 

energy performance scale and the ENERGY STAR label for 

commercial buildings, EPA witnessed a huge explosion in 

participation across market sectors. Seventy-five percent of 

consumers were aware of ENERGY STAR and the number 

of buildings that earned the ENERGY STAR increased more 

than 50 percent in just one year (Fig. 3). 

The value of an ENERGY STAR score has grown with the 

passage of time and the delivery of energy efficiency to 

the commercial building sector. An ENERGY STAR score 

is a quick, objective assessment, easily understood by the 

marketplace as well as all corners of an organization. As 

long as EPA delivers performance-based recognition, the 

integrity of the scores is critical. This integrity demands

rigorous statistical standards when developing energy 

performance models—a benefit to both the organizations 

who want an accurate reflection of their buildings’ energy 

performance and to EPA in accounting for carbon reductions. 

ENERGY STAR energy performance scores are not currently 

available for those building types for which insufficient 

statistical data is available (stadiums, for example) due 

to the rigorous data requirements of the ENERGY STAR 

program. However, any building, regardless of size, age, or 

type, can still gauge progress using EPA’s Portfolio Manager 

tool. In fact, more than 20 percent of the buildings whose 

energy performance is being tracked in Portfolio Manager 

are not able to obtain an energy performance score. In the 

future, better information and data will help expand the 

ENERGY STAR energy performance scale to more space 

types without sacrificing the rigorous standards that are a 

defining characteristic of the program. 

Success by the Numbers

Over the past decade, the ENERGY STAR Buildings program 

has experienced staggering growth by every measure. As the 

end of 2009 approaches, the energy performance of more 

than 120,000 buildings representing nearly 14 billion square 

feet has been measured through ENERGY STAR. More 

than 5,000 organizations have joined the ENERGY STAR 

buildings program as partners. Nearly 9,000 buildings have 

earned the ENERGY STAR across all 50 states. And perhaps 

 2008 2009

More than 6,200 buildings have 

earned the ENERGY STAR—more 

than a 50 percent increase over 

the prior year.

Nearly 9,000 

buildings have 

earned the 

ENERGY STAR. 

ENERGY STAR label 

extended to houses of 

worship that perform 

in the top 25 percent 

of the market.

Nearly 4,100

buildings have 

earned the 

ENERGY STAR.

EPA releases 

first-ever ranking 

of US cities with 

the most ENERGY 

STAR buildings.

Facilities Eligible to Earn the ENERGY STAR* 

Bank branches 

Courthouses 

Dormitories 

Financial centers 

Hospitals 

Hotels 

Houses of worship 

K-12 schools 

Medical Offices 

Offices 

Retailers 

Supermarkets 

Warehouses

Auto assembly 

Cement plants 

Container glass manufacturing 

Flat glass manufacturing 

Frozen fried potato processing 

Juice processing 

Petroleum refineries 

Pharmaceutical manufacturing 

Wet corn mills 

Commercial Buildings Industrial Plants

* As of Dec. 2009

ENERGY STAR label extended to flat and 

container glass manufacturing, frozen fried 

potato processing, and juice processing 

plants that perform in the top 25 percent of 

the market.

ENERGY STAR label extended to pharmaceutical 

manufacturing plants

that perform in the top 25 

percent of the market.

Fig. 2
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 8

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

most importantly, over the past decade, ENERGY STAR 

partners in the commercial marketplace have helped prevent 

greenhouse gas emissions equal to the electricity use of 60 

million American homes every year. 

A Bright Future

Now, 10 years since the introduction of the ENERGY STAR 

label for buildings and 18 years since the inception of Green 

Lights, the ENERGY STAR approach to energy efficiency and 

greenhouse gas emissions reductions remains unchanged. 

It is still rooted in the power of collaborative partnerships, 

the importance of high-level organizational commitment, 

the value of a good plan, a consistent and objective way 

to measure real-world consumption and savings on a 

continuous basis, and recognition. These core values will 

continue to be of great importance to the commercial 

building marketplace as it encounters the challenges of an 

economic recession, growing concern about climate change, 

consumer skepticism of green claims by U.S. corporations, 

and differing approaches to evaluating a building’s energy 

performance. 

An exciting future lies ahead for the ENERGY STAR 

program. Improvements to Portfolio Manager will enhance 

its value both as an energy management tool and as an 

important nexus of climate, energy, and green building 

policies. The use of Portfolio Manager by a growing 

number of organizations and localities—as well as the first 

international partner—will enrich this extensive pool of real 

world commercial building data. 

ENERGY STAR will continue to expand to new markets

and address new building types, including data centers, 

thereby creating greater opportunities for carbon savings. 

Organizations will continue to use ENERGY STAR as a 

platform for their energy efficiency efforts and will be better 

positioned as a result to address future climate policies, 

reporting requirements, and regulations. 

Finally, a new emphasis on the role everyone plays in 

improving the energy efficiency of the places where 

we work, play, and learn will deliver valuable employee 

engagement opportunities and greater consumer awareness, 

thus driving increased demand for energy efficiency over 

the long term. As the next decade dawns, more and more 

buildings in communities across America will proudly bear 

EPA’s ENERGY STAR label, marking a greater future for us all.

Green Buildings and ENERGY STAR

When someone refers to a building as “green” it can mean 

many things, including a reasonable assumption that a 

building is energy efficient. The surprising truth is that many 

buildings identified as green may be no more, and perhaps 

even less, energy efficient than “average” buildings. The terms 

“sustainable” and “high performance”—words often used to 

denote environmentally friendly buildings—do not necessarily 

offer a guarantee of energy efficiency. 

To determine a building’s energy efficiency relative to the 

marketplace, explicit energy efficiency goals should be set 

based on how real buildings perform. Then, once the building 

is constructed and operational, its actual energy performance 

should be measured and tracked against the same marketbased data. This is exactly what ENERGY STAR allows 

designers, architects, and building owners to do—create an 

energy target for specific types of buildings, grounded in real 

energy data from a large sample of existing buildings.

As the discussion of green building continues, it’s important 

to keep in mind that among its many attributes, for a building 

to be green, it must be energy efficient—and for the best 

guarantee of energy efficiency in the commercial building 

marketplace, look for the ENERGY STAR. 

1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

8,000

9,000

7,000

6,000

5,000

4,000

3,000

2,000

1,000

0

Fig. 3. ENERGY STAR Labeled Buildings (cumulative)
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 9

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

Ridgehaven Green Building, San Diego, CA

In 1999, the Ridgehaven Green Building in San Diego, CA, was the first building in 

the nation to qualify for the ENERGY STAR label. Three years earlier, the structure 

had been renovated by the City of San Diego’s Environmental Services Department to 

demonstrate that green buildings can be developed within municipal guidelines and 

budgets, using off-the-shelf technology. The Ridgehaven Green Building’s success 

motivated the City of San Diego to adopt a formal policy establishing the City’s commitment to green building practices. More than thirteen years later, the building still 

serves as a model for others, leaving portions of building systems exposed so visitors 

can learn about energy efficiency. And it’s still among the nation’s most efficient 

buildings, having earned additional ENERGY STAR labels in 2005, 2006, and 2009.

Hotel Nikko, San Francisco, CA

Hotel Nikko, a boutique San Francisco hotel, blends Asian grace with all the modern 

conveniences guests expect from a luxury hotel. One thing guests might not expect, 

however, is an approach to energy management that makes the Hotel Nikko among 

the most energy efficient hotels in the nation. Through its innovative approaches, this 

hotel shows that it’s not necessary to sacrifice comfort or style to achieve big energy 

savings. How do they do it? Eighty-two percent of the building’s lighting is either highefficient fluorescent or LED, the hotel has equipped all guest rooms with sensors that 

turn down thermostats when the rooms are vacant, variable frequency drives were 

installed on ventilation fans, and in-room laundry cards encourage guests to re-use 

linens, thereby cutting water and energy usage. San Francisco’s stylish Hotel Nikko makes it 

clear that energy efficency doesn’t have to 

mean sacrificing comfort or luxury.

The Ridgehaven Green Building served as a 

model for San Diego, earning the very first 

ENERGY STAR in the process.

CASE STUDIES

Every building has a story to tell. The wide variety of 

ENERGY STAR labeled buildings shows that there are 

many paths to take to energy efficiency, but they all 

follow the same basic guidelines: Start with a organizational committment, assess performance and set goals, 

develop and implement a plan to improve, evaluate 

progress, and finally, earn recognition. The following 

stories show how 14 organizations made those guidelines all their own.

Quality Inn

Federal Office Building

Hotel Nikko

Ridgehaven 

Green Building

JCPenney

Waterloo 

Elementary 

School

Salt River 

Materials 

Group Phoenix 

Cement Plant

Kohl’s 

Department 

Store

Bruton High 

School

1900 K Street

EPA Region VIII 

Headquarters

Food Lion

Southface 

Eco-Office

VA Ann Arbor
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 10

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

Salt River Materials Group modernized its 

1950s-era plant to achieve superior energy 

performance.

Waterloo Elementary School, Waterloo, IN

This single-story school building serves approximately 600 students in grades K-5. 

Facing less funding from state and federal sources, and more competition for available 

grants, the school decided to look to low-cost options to improve the energy efficiency 

of its building. With help from consultant Energy Education, Inc., the school measures 

and adjusts energy use throughout the year. This often means periodic walk-throughs 

and assessments at off-hours, as well as educating staff, teachers, and students about 

energy-saving behaviors they can adopt during school hours. Within five years, with no 

large capital investments, Waterloo Elementary School was able to reduce its energy 

use by 31% and save $283,000. The school plans to redirect these savings to better 

meet the educational needs of its students.

Salt River Materials Group Phoenix Cement Plant, Clarkdale, AZ

Salt River Materials Group produces Phoenix Cement® at its plant in Clarksdale, 

Arizona. The plant was built in the 1950s and, over time, received various upgrades 

to improve operating efficiency. The company also modified operating procedures to 

reduce energy consumption. In 1999, the company initiated a major plant modernization, installing new equipment such as energy efficient roller mills for coal, raw meal, 

and finish grinding, and an efficient clinker cooler that captures and uses waste heat. 

When the plant improvements were later evaluated, significant improvements in 

energy efficiency had been achieved and the plant earned the ENERGY STAR in 2007 

and 2008.

JCPenney, Huntington Park, CA

JCPenney’s Huntington Park, California, store opened its doors in 1928 and is one 

of the company’s longest continually operating stores in the country. It is also one 

of sixty-three JCPenney stores that participate in the company’s Advanced Energy 

Management Program which involves both facility maintenance personnel and store 

associates in energy awareness efforts. Store managers monitor energy use on a 

next-day basis to catch any irregularities and problems as they occur. After a review of 

lighting and equipment schedules, as well as proper maintenance of heating and cooling equipment, the store was able to reduce the time needed for opening and closing 

of the sales floor by almost 65 hours per week. JCPenney, an ENERGY STAR Sustained 

Excellence Award winner, continues to expand its energy efficiency efforts to its entire 

chain of more than 1,100 retail stores through ongoing education, awareness, and 

energy reduction programs.

Through better operations and maintenance, 

Waterloo Elementary saved $283,000—funds 

that can now be used for education.

CASE STUDIES (cont.)

Built in 1928, JCPenney’s Huntington Park 

store benefitted from a long-standing corporate committment to energy efficiency.
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 11

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

1900 K Street, Washington, DC

Designed by the firm of Cesar Pelli & Associates and constructed in 1996, 1900 K Street 

is a distinctive 13-story office building in downtown DC. In 1999, the building received 

an ENERGY STAR score of 32 (on a 1-100 scale). By trying to better understand the 

design of the building, the building’s facility team, led by Hines, was able to close the 

gap between design intent and actual operations. They calibrated controls, installed 

motion sensors and a variable frequency drive, reprogrammed the building’s energy 

management system, improved maintenance and routing assessments, upgraded one 

chiller, and fine-tuned settings. As a result, within three years the building received 

an ENERGY STAR score of 75, making it eligible for the ENERGY STAR. The building 

now saves $1.09 per square foot in energy costs, and reports an annual CO2 emission 

reduction of 46 million pounds, and has earned the ENERGY STAR label six times.

Federal Office Building, Seattle, WA

The Federal Office Building was the first building in Seattle specifically allocated 

to house federal government offices. Built in 1933, this historic structure has been 

showing the buildings around town what it means to be energy efficient. In addition 

to earning two ENERGY STAR labels, the Federal Office Building won first place for 

highest energy performance in the 2008 BOMA Seattle King County Kilowatt Crackdown. To achieve this level of performance, the General Services Administration (GSA) 

conducted an energy audit, replaced an old cooling tower, upgraded the old elevator 

bank and lighting systems, and replaced the control panels for the building automation system. The building’s utility provider, Seattle City Light, has provided more than 

$100,000 in incentive funding for these projects. 

Bruton High School, Williamsburg, VA

Built in 1976, Bruton High School in York County, Virginia, received a complete renovation in 2003. The renovation included lighting and equipment upgrades, new windows, 

a cool roof, a building automation system, and a new geothermal heating and cooling 

system to replace the old all-electric system. The geothermal system consists of 85 

new heat pumps, six energy-recovery units, and 320 underground loops that each 

plunge to a depth of 200 feet. As a result of this top-to-bottom renovation, Bruton High 

School became the first high school in Virginia to earn EPA’s ENERGY STAR. Officials 

often lead architects, engineers, and officials from other school districts on building 

tours, and report that the annual operating cost for the renovated school building is 

$0.67 per square foot—significantly less than average. Bruton High School’s geothermal system is 

helping to keep energy costs low. 

CASE STUDIES (cont.)

Seattle’s Federal Office Building partnered with 

a local utility to help finance energy efficiency 

upgrades. 

Copyright Joe Mabel

Facility managers raised the energy 

performance score of 1900 K Street from 

a 32 to a 75 in just three years.
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 12

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

EPA is leading by example through a focus on 

energy efficiency through all operations of its 

Region 8 Headquarters.

Kohl’s Department Store, Sussex, WI

Organizations often wonder about the road ahead once they have achieved substantial 

savings through energy efficiency. In the case of Kohl’s Department Stores, which 

already owns more than 350 ENERGY STAR labeled stores and maintains a rigorous 

approach to energy efficiency and sustainability, it began looking to alternative energy 

sources. Kohl’s Sussex store had already earned the ENERGY STAR label before solar 

panels were added, which ensured that the store’s energy use was already relatively 

low. By adding on-site solar energy generation, the company minimized the remaining greenhouse gas emissions and raised its energy performance score from an 84 to 

a 90. Currently, 61 of Kohl’s ENERGY STAR labeled stores are equipped with on-site 

solar generation, which provide 20 to 50 percent of the stores’ already-reduced energy 

demands, depending on geographic location. 

EPA Region VIII Headquarters, Denver, CO

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 8 office building represents 

the best in design, work environment, environmental performance, and security 

while providing a good value for the taxpayers. During the design phase, the design 

team achieved “Designed to Earn the ENERGY STAR” based on intended energy use. 

After two years in full operation, the building proves that it is indeed performing as 

intended, earning an ENERGY STAR and proving that good design and operations must 

go hand-in-hand. Simultaneously, EPA staff members who work in the building are 

maintaining its energy- and cost-saving potential through good behaviors. EPA takes 

its role as an environmental leader one step further by hosting educational tours of 

the building, participating in green events and conferences, and maintaining project 

details and a robust case study online. 

Food Lion, Stanley, NC

The ENERGY STAR labeled Food Lion supermarket in Stanley, North Carolina, represents a new energy-efficient prototype for the company. It is also one of more than 

900 Food Lion stores that have earned the ENERGY STAR. Opened in May 2007, the 

store received an initial energy performance score of 78. Not satisfied, Food Lion’s 

energy team analyzed the store’s energy use in EPA’s Portfolio Manager and prioritized 

improvements. Within two years, the store’s energy performance score had increased 

to an 83, and is helping Food Lion fine-tune the operations of future prototype stores. 

A leader in corporate-wide energy management, in 2008, Food Lion saved more than 

45 billion BTUs across all of its buildings. 

CASE STUDIES (cont.)

The Food Lion in Stanley, NC, represents a new 

energy-efficient prototype for a company that 

already has 900 ENERGY STAR labeled stores.

After a rigorous energy efficiency program, 

Kohl’s is now meeting much of its remaining 

energy needs with solar power. 
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 13

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

Southface Eco Office, Atlanta, GA

The Southface Eco Office was conceived of as a replicable, cost-effective model of 

sustainable commercial construction. In 2006, while still in its design phase, project 

architects achieved the “Designed to Earn the ENERGY STAR” designation based on 

intended energy use. These models took into account proposed design features such 

as daylighting, solar angles and shading, electrochromic glass, insulated concrete form 

wall systems, photo sensors, dimming ballasts, occupancy sensors, and green roofing. After construction was completed in 2008, building engineers began analyzing 

actual energy use and fine-tuning systems and equipment in order to ensure that the 

building was operating as intended. Their commissioning paid off, and after 12 months 

of operation, the Southface Eco Office earned the ENERGY STAR for superior energy 

performance. The building’s average daily energy cost is $25.

Quality Inn & Suites, Sequim, WA

Constructed in 2005, the Quality Inn & Suites is a 60-room hotel that had been designed and built with energy efficiency in mind. But as a mid-scale hotel brand, it did 

not have access to the in-house engineers or outside consultants that many high-end 

hotels rely on. Instead, the owner and staff turned to ENERGY STAR to learn about 

energy efficiency. It also partnered with its local electricity provider, Clallam County 

Public Utility District, to take advantage of several energy saving programs. Their first 

joint project was a building lighting retrofit of which the District agreed to reimburse 

the hotel for 70 percent of the cost. As a result of this and other measures, the hotel 

managed to raise its ENERGY STAR score from an 87 to a 96. The Quality Inn & Suites’ 

resourcefulness and persistence serve as an example for other mid-priced hotels to 

follow.

Veterans Affairs Ann Arbor Healthcare System, Ann Arbor, MI

The VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System is a 1.2 million-square-foot campus that provides 

high-quality care to veterans. In addition to performing standardized operations and 

maintenance, the energy team has conducted a series of energy efficiency upgrades 

as well as led the training and education of staff in order to improve the energy performance of the facility. As part of the Department of Veterans Affairs’ national initiative, 

the energy use of the VA Ann Arbor is benchmarked in EPA’ s Portfolio Manager tool 

and reports to the Department on a quarterly basis. It has earned more ENERGY STAR 

labels than any other VA hospital.

The VA Ann Arbor is participating in the 

Department of Veterans Affairs’ national 

energy benchmarking initiative.

Originally designed to earn the ENERGY STAR, 

the Southface Eco Office fulfilled its design 

intent when it earned the ENERGY STAR label.

Copyright Jonathan Hillyer, Atlanta, GA

The Quality Inn & Suites proved that 

superior energy performance isn’t out 

of reach for mid-range hotels.

CASE STUDIES (cont.)
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 14

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

EARLY CHAMPIONS

Some organizations saw the value of earning the 

ENERGY STAR right away. They wasted no time in benchmarking their energy use, receiving an energy performance score, and then applying for the ENERGY STAR 

label. The next two pages showcase some of the first 

buildings in each category to earn the ENERGY STAR. 

They are leading the way for others in their industry, and 

deserve recognition for their pioneering spirit.

First ENERGY STAR labeled dormitory: 

Congreve Hall, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH

First ENERGY STAR labeled building: 

City of San Diego’s Ridgehaven Green Building, San Diego, CA

First ENERGY STAR labeled retail store: 

JCPenney, Burlington, WA*

* Building is one of several that earned the first labels simultaneously.

First ENERGY STAR labeled hospital:

Memorial Hospital of Carbondale, Carbondale, IL*

First ENERGY STAR labeled financial center: 

114 West 47th Street, New York, NY

Copyright Debbie Franke

First ENERGY STAR labeled hotel:

Sheraton Boston, Boston, MA*

First ENERGY STAR labeled house of worship: 

Plantation Baptist Church, Plantation, FL
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 15

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

EARLY CHAMPIONS (cont.)

First ENERGY STAR labeled warehouse:

Four Seasons Produce, Ephrata, PA

First ENERGY STAR labeled building that had also achieved 

“Designed to Earn the ENERGY STAR”for its design plans: 

Kinard Junior High School, Fort Collins, CO

First ENERGY STAR labeled sporting goods store: 

Dick’s Sporting Goods, Mentor, OH

First ENERGY STAR labeled embassy:

Embassy of Finland, Washington, DC

Copyright Fred Fuhrmeister

* Building is one of several that earned the first labels simultaneously.

First ENERGY STAR labeled hardware store: 

True Value Hardware, Red Lodge, MT

First ENERGY STAR labeled wireless store:

Verizon Wireless, Toldeo, OH*

First ENERGY STAR labeled drugstore:

Rite Aid, Harrisburg, PA

First ENERGY STAR labeled office supply store: 

Staples, Crossville, TN
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 16

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

OLD and NEW, BIG and SMALL: EPA HAS GOT THEM ALL

ENERGY STAR buildings can be old or new, big or small, high-tech or more modest in 

appearance. It doesn’t matter what they look like, as long as they perform in the top 

25 percent of comparable buildings nationwide. The following buildings show the 

rich variety of our country’s most energy-efficient buildings.

Newest ENERGY STAR building (that had been Designed to 

Earn the ENERGY STAR): Southface Eco-Office, Atlanta, GA. 

Designed in 2006; constructed in 2008; labeled in 2009.

Largest ENERGY STAR building: USAA McDermott Building, 

San Antonio, TX. At 4.5 million-square-feet, USAA’s 

headquarters building is larger than the Mall of America.

Oldest ENERGY STAR building: Cambridge Savings Bank, 

Cambridge, MA. This building was constructed in 1820, the 

same year in which Maine became the 23rd state in the Union.

Tallest ENERGY STAR building:

Aon Center, Chicago, IL. At 1,136 feet high, the Aon Center is 

higher than three stacked football fields and is the fifth-tallest 

building in the United States.

Smallest ENERGY STAR building: Cambridge Savings Bank’s 

Burlington Banking Center, Burlington, MA. At 2,313-squarefeet, it is about the size of the average American home.
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 17

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

FAMILIAR FACADES

Many people will recognize these buildings, but they might not realize that they are among the nation’s most energy efficient. 

Wrigley Building, Chicago, IL Prudential Tower, Boston, MA

One Wall Street, New York, NY Transamerica Pyramid, 

San Francisco, CA

Chrysler Building, New York, NY

7 World Trade Center, New York, NY

Copyright David Sundberg
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 18

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

WHO’S INSIDE ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS?

Efficient boilers and motion sensors aren’t the only interesting things about these ENERGY STAR labeled buildings, all of 

whom have notable tenants helping to ensure that minimal 

energy is wasted throughout the course of business.

The music industry is greener thanks to MTV, whose 

headquarters at 2700 Colorado Avenue in Santa Monica 

has earned the ENERGY STAR label for four years running. 

A former Art Deco Marine Hospital on the National Register 

of Historic Places, Amazon.com’s Seattle headquarters won 

an award from the American Institute of Architects in 2000.

Fans of the television show Boston Legal may recognize 

this ENERGY STAR labeled building at 500 Boylston Street as 

the law office of the fictitious Crane, Poole & Schmidt.

The television show America’s Most Wanted operates out 

of 10351 Santa Monica Boulevard in Los Angeles, which 

has earned ten ENERGY STAR labels.

Explorers come home to the National Geographic Society’s

energy-efficient headquarters in Washington, DC.

©2009 Joseph H. Bailey/National Geographic
A Decade of ENERGY STAR Buildings: 1999-2009 19

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR BUILDINGS

1999-2009

A DECADE OF ENERGY STAR LABELS

Energy efficiency is not a one-time achievement, and 

nothing demonstrates that better than these five buildings 

that have each earned ten ENERGY STAR labels over the 

decade. Not only were these buildings early champions 

of the ENERGY STAR commercial buildings program, but 

year after year they’ve proven that they continue to sustain 

superior performance.

6100 Wilshire, Los Angeles, CA

Earned the ENERGY STAR in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 

2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2009.

US Airways Corporate Headquarters, Tempe, AZ

Earned the ENERGY STAR in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 

2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009.

10780 Santa Monica Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA

Earned the ENERGY STAR in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 

2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008.

10351 Santa Monica Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA

Earned the ENERGY STAR in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 

2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008.

Phoenix Tower, Houston, TX

Earned the ENERGY STAR in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 

2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008.
THANK YOU

ENERGY STAR® is a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency program helping 

businesses and individuals fight global warming through superior energy efficiency. 

Before ENERGY STAR was a household name and before being 

“green” was a matter of survival in a competitive marketplace, 

pioneering organizations saw the value in energy efficiency and 

collaborative partnerships. A decade later, EPA is profoundly 

thankful for their confidence and for the substantial savings they 

have helped deliver for the environment. Today, thousands of 

organizations are following their lead—creating a better future for 

generations of Americans. Thank You.