Domino Sugar Refinery (Brooklyn)
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The Domino Sugar Refinery is a
mixed-use development Mixed use is a type of urban development, urban design, urban planning and/or a zoning classification that blends multiple uses, such as residential, commercial, cultural, institutional, or entertainment, into one space, where those functions ...
and former
sugar refinery A sugar refinery is a refinery which processes raw sugar from cane or sugar extracted from beets into white refined sugar. Cane sugar mills traditionally produce raw sugar, which is sugar that still contains molasses, giving it color ...
in the neighborhood of
Williamsburg Williamsburg may refer to: Places *Colonial Williamsburg, a living-history museum and private foundation in Virginia *Williamsburg, Brooklyn, neighborhood in New York City *Williamsburg, former name of Kernville (former town), California *Williams ...
in
Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
,
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
, along the
East River The East River is a saltwater Estuary, tidal estuary or strait in New York City. The waterway, which is not a river despite its name, connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates Long Island, ...
. When active as a refinery, it was operated by the
Havemeyer family The Havemeyer family is a prominent New York (state), New York family of Germany, German origin that owned significant sugar refining interests in the United States. History William Havemeyer (1770-1851) left Germany at age 15 and arrived in New ...
's
American Sugar Refining Company The American Sugar Refining Company (ASR) was the most significant American business unit in the sugar refining industry in the early 1900s. It had interests in Puerto Rico and other Caribbean locations and operated one of the world's largest s ...
, which produced Domino brand sugar and was one of several sugar factories on the East River in northern Brooklyn. The family's first refinery in Williamsburg opened in 1856 and was operated by German-born Frederick C. Havemeyer Jr., the son of American Sugar's founder. After a fire destroyed the original structures located on South Third Street and Kent Avenue in Williamsburg, the current complex was built in 1882 by Theodore A. Havemeyer, Thomas Winslow, and J. E. James. The American Sugar Refining Company grew to control most of the sugar industry in the United States by the late 19th century, with the Brooklyn refinery as its largest plant. Many different types of sugar were refined at the facility, and it employed up to 4,500 workers at its peak in 1919. Demand started to decline in the 1920s with advances in sugar refining and the construction of other facilities, but the refinery continued to operate until 2004. In the early 21st century, the refinery was redeveloped as office space, residential towers, and parkland. The complex's filter, pan, and finishing house was made a
New York City designated landmark The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting New York City's architecturally, historically, and c ...
in 2007, because of its historical significance as one of several industrial concerns on Brooklyn's waterfront. After the failure of an initial redevelopment proposal by CPC Resources,
SHoP Architects SHoP Architects is an architecture firm in Lower Manhattan, New York City, with projects located on five continents. Led by four principals, the firm provides services to residences, commercial buildings, schools and cultural institutions, as we ...
proposed another design in 2013, which was approved the next year. Demolition of the non-landmark structures in the refinery began shortly afterward, and the first new tower in the development project opened in 2017. , the refinery redevelopment consists of four completed towers; the Filter, Pan, and Finishing House; and a waterside park called Domino Park.


Refinery

The industrial waterfront of Brooklyn was developed in the 19th century with the construction of major shipping hubs such as Red Hook's Atlantic Basin, the
Brooklyn Navy Yard The Brooklyn Navy Yard (originally known as the New York Navy Yard) is a shipyard and industrial complex in northwest Brooklyn in New York City, New York (state), New York, U.S. The Navy Yard is located on the East River in Wallabout Bay, a se ...
, and
Industry City Industry City (also Bush Terminal) is a historic intermodal shipping, warehousing, and manufacturing complex on the Upper New York Bay waterfront in the Sunset Park neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City. The northern portion, commonly cal ...
. The village of Williamsburgh in northern Brooklyn was incorporated on the bank of the
East River The East River is a saltwater Estuary, tidal estuary or strait in New York City. The waterway, which is not a river despite its name, connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates Long Island, ...
in 1827, with most of the commercial enterprises located on the waterfront, and after becoming a part of the city of Brooklyn in 1855, Williamsburg grew quickly. German-born cousins Frederick C. Havemeyer and William Havemeyer, of the
Havemeyer family The Havemeyer family is a prominent New York (state), New York family of Germany, German origin that owned significant sugar refining interests in the United States. History William Havemeyer (1770-1851) left Germany at age 15 and arrived in New ...
, had established their first sugar refinery on Vandam Street in modern-day
Hudson Square Hudson Square is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded approximately by Clarkson Street to the north, Canal Street (Manhattan), Canal Street to the south, Varick Street (Manhattan), Varick Street to the east, and ...
, Manhattan, in 1807. The original refinery occupied a lot of , but by the 1840s it had expanded to ten stories and occupied the whole
city block A city block, residential block, urban block, or simply block is a central element of urban planning and urban design. In a city with a grid system, the block is the smallest group of buildings that is surrounded by streets. City blocks are th ...
. Frederick C. Havemeyer Jr. (1807–1891), who joined the Havemeyer family business in 1823, helped the operation grow into a large sugar-refining corporation.


Original facility

The Havemeyer family's sugar-refining operations had outgrown its Manhattan plant by the mid-19th century. The first member of the Havemeyer family to open a facility in Williamsburg was John C. Havemeyer, Frederick Jr.'s nephew. At the end of 1856, John C. Havemeyer and Charles E. Bertrand co-founded Havemeyer & Bertrand at the intersection of modern-day Kent Avenue and South 3rd Street. The firm assumed the name Havemeyer, Townsend & Company in 1858, then Havemeyers & Elder in 1863. The refinery employed several Havemeyer family members, including
Theodore Theodore may refer to: Places * Theodore, Australian Capital Territory, Australia * Theodore, Queensland, Australia * Theodore, Saskatchewan, Canada * Theodore, Alabama, United States * Theodore Reservoir, in Saskatchewan People * Theodore (gi ...
,
Henry Henry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Henry (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters * Henry (surname) * Henry, a stage name of François-Louis Henry (1786–1855), French baritone Arts and entertainmen ...
,
Hector In Greek mythology, Hector (; , ) was a Trojan prince, a hero and the greatest warrior for Troy during the Trojan War. He is a major character in Homer's ''Iliad'', where he leads the Trojans and their allies in the defense of Troy, killing c ...
, and
Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''* ...
, the latter two of whom later formed their own refinery. The Havemeyers & Elder refinery, also called the Yellow Sugar House, was the largest of the Havemeyer family plants. According to sketches, the complex included a five-story building, two single-story buildings, and a standalone chimney. During 1863 and 1865, the Havemeyers bought two lots between South 2nd and South 4th streets for expansion of the facility. Several other refineries were subsequently built in Williamsburg, making it into the world's largest sugar-refining center at that time. By 1870, the neighborhood produced a majority of sugar used within the United States, and by 1881, the Havemeyer refinery processed about three-fourths of all refined sugar in the nation. Because of the depth of the East River in the vicinity of the refinery, shipments of raw sugar from overseas could be loaded directly into the facility. In February 1881, Havemeyers & Elder received a permit from the City of Brooklyn's Bureau of Buildings to add three stories to an existing six-story building on Kent Avenue between South 4th and South 5th streets. That November, Havemeyers & Elder acquired an adjacent parcel, which had previously been leased to rival refiners Wintjen, Dick and Harms. The same month, Theodore Havemeyer submitted plans for a ten-story brick structure, likely a new filter house, to the Bureau of Buildings.


Reconstruction

Construction on the new filter house was underway when the original refinery burned down on January 8, 1882, destroying the structures between South 3rd and South 4th streets. The fire destroyed several warehouses as well as the building that contained the refinery and finishing house. It caused an estimated $1.5 million in damage, though
insurance policies In insurance, the insurance policy is a contract (generally a standard form contract) between the insurer and the policyholder, which determines the claims which the insurer is legally required to pay. In exchange for an initial payment, known as ...
covered about half of the losses, and resulted in the elimination of 1,200 to 2,000 jobs. Its destruction resulted in an increase in sugar prices nationwide. In February 1882, Theodore Havemeyer purchased a refinery in
Red Hook, Brooklyn Red Hook is a neighborhood in western Brooklyn, New York City, United States, within the area once known as South Brooklyn. It is located on a peninsula projecting into the Upper New York Bay and is bounded by the Gowanus Expressway and the Ca ...
, so that operations could restart while the new refinery was being erected. The next month, Havemeyers & Elder submitted plans for a new fireproof pan and finishing house measuring to the Bureau of Buildings. According to the ''
Brooklyn Daily Eagle The ''Brooklyn Eagle'' (originally joint name ''The Brooklyn Eagle'' and ''Kings County Democrat'', later ''The Brooklyn Daily Eagle'' before shortening title further to ''Brooklyn Eagle'') was an afternoon daily newspaper published in the city ...
'', Theodore Havemeyer supervised the new structures' construction. Two people were variously cited as being the contractor: a building application in November 1881 mentions Thomas Winslow and J. E. James as the builders, while a subsequent application in March 1882 states that Havemeyer and James were co-architects. The rebuilding was funded in part by insurance money and the sale of assets. The reconstruction was reported to be completed by July 1883. In total, work cost $7 million (equal to $ million in ).


Operations

The new refinery structure gave the Havemeyer family a large
competitive advantage In business, a competitive advantage is an attribute that allows an organization to outperform its competitors. A competitive advantage may include access to natural resources, such as high-grade ores or a low-cost power source, highly skille ...
due to its size, and by 1884, the rebuilt plant employed 1,000 men who made 5,000 barrels of sugar daily. The family created the Sugar Refineries Company or Sugar Trust in late 1887. The Sugar Trust was reorganized into the
American Sugar Refining Company The American Sugar Refining Company (ASR) was the most significant American business unit in the sugar refining industry in the early 1900s. It had interests in Puerto Rico and other Caribbean locations and operated one of the world's largest s ...
in 1891 after the previous year's passage of the
Sherman Antitrust Act The Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 (, ) is a United States antitrust law which prescribes the rule of free competition among those engaged in commerce and consequently prohibits unfair monopolies. It was passed by Congress and is named for S ...
; prior to reorganization, the trust had controlled 98% of the United States' sugar production. An account of the plant's operation in 1894 stated that the plant was "the largest of its kind in the world" with seven buildings on of land; the refinery employed 3,000 workers and utilized of coal a day, producing 13,000 barrels of sugar daily. In 1896, American Sugar became one of the original twelve companies in the
Dow Jones Industrial Average The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), Dow Jones, or simply the Dow (), is a stock market index of 30 prominent companies listed on stock exchanges in the United States. The DJIA is one of the oldest and most commonly followed equity indice ...
. The company continued to prosper despite further antitrust legislation, and Frederick's son Henry O. Havemeyer renamed the company "Domino's Sugar" in the early 1900s. Many different types of sugar were refined at the facility. Raw sugar was shipped from forty countries and from Florida. Raw sugar was first unloaded from piers along the East River, and mixed with water within the filter house. Then, the mixture was strained, pumped to the thirteenth floor, and placed into , circular vats called "blow-ups". Fifty pipes transported the mixture upward. Afterward, the mixture was filtered through " bone black" and
canvas Canvas is an extremely durable Plain weave, plain-woven Cloth, fabric used for making sails, tents, Tent#Marquees and larger tents, marquees, backpacks, Shelter (building), shelters, as a Support (art), support for oil painting and for other ite ...
layers into circular tanks that measured tall and across. The solution then went into the pan house, where it was boiled at in vacuum pans that measured tall and across. Subsequently, the mixture was sent through
centrifuge A centrifuge is a device that uses centrifugal force to subject a specimen to a specified constant force - for example, to separate various components of a fluid. This is achieved by spinning the fluid at high speed within a container, thereby ...
s, where it was separated into sugar and molasses. The sugar grains were then taken to the finishing house, where they were separated in granulating machines and then roasted and dried. The roasting and drying process produced either retail-ready products such as cubes, tablets, and syrups, or individual grains that could be used as ingredients in other processes. The sugar products were packed into barrels, which were stored in the warehouses nearby. The work conditions at the refinery were described as onerous, and the workers were poorly paid, despite working shifts of at least ten hours per day. When the refinery was founded, almost all of the workers were German immigrants, while Irish immigrants were hired as outdoor laborers. Later immigrants came from
eastern Eastern or Easterns may refer to: Transportation Airlines *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 192 ...
,
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, and
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, as well as the
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. Workers were paid a starting salary of between $1.12 and $1.50 per day (equivalent to between $ and $ in ), with 5- or 10-cent pay increases according to tenure. The highest-paid workers at the plant earned between $100 and $150 a month (equivalent to between $ and $ in ). According to a 1900 ''Brooklyn Daily Eagle'' article, workers were employed for at least eight years on average, and many workers either lived near Kent Avenue or took trolley lines to the refinery. Most laborers at that time lived in
boarding house A boarding house is a house (frequently a family home) in which lodging, lodgers renting, rent one or more rooms on a nightly basis and sometimes for extended periods of weeks, months, or years. The common parts of the house are maintained, and ...
s, though the refinery did have lockers and showers in its basement. Workers were prone to being fired at times of job insecurity, although conditions improved in the early 20th century, when wages were increased and some workers received pensions. Most employees were men, but by 1920, about one of ten workers were women.


Later usage


Early 20th century

American Sugar established the East River Terminal Railroad in 1907 to transport sugar between the refinery and the
Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal The Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal was a shortline railroad and marine terminal with its main facilities and administrative offices located on 86–88 Kent Avenue (now part of East River State Park and Bushwick Inlet Park) in the Williamsbur ...
, immediately to the north of the sugar refinery. American Sugar believed the refinery to be so fireproof that it did not need insurance. In 1917, during
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, an explosion destroyed part of the plant, killing between six and twelve workers. A crowd of more than 15,000 people gathered to watch the plant burn. Initially, there was serious concern that the explosion was the work of German agents, because the Germans were the United States' adversary in the war, but the ultimate cause was found to be the ignition of sugar grains in the refinery's machinery. By 1919, the refinery had over 4,500 paid employees. The company took ownership of a pier at the end of Grand Street, one block north of the refinery, the same year. American Sugar also proposed closing the five short dead-end streets between Grand and South Fifth streets, in order to have full control of the land that comprised the refinery, but withdrew its application following local opposition. American Sugar proposed closing the five streets again in 1923, but this was also opposed by the local population. The company then threatened to move to New Jersey in 1924 over the failure to close the dead-end streets. At the time, the plant had an annual payroll of $3.5 million and manufactured of sugar per year. The New York City government allowed the company to close streets in front of the refinery. In 1926, American Sugar commenced a large renovation of the plant. As part of the project, the dock was replaced with a bulkhead, and a new boiler house was erected, as well as a warehouse that could store of sugar. The renovation was completed in 1927. The upgrades had cost $3 million and resulted in increased efficiency in the refinery's operations. Around this time, a large sign with yellow letters spelling "Domino Sugar" was erected on one of the refinery's buildings, facing the East River. By American Sugar's 50th anniversary in 1941, the refinery produced 60 grades of sugars and was a significant source of income to the municipal governments and surrounding community. It was estimated that from 1912 to 1941, the factory paid $156 million in wages, $4 million in taxes, and $2 million for water; accepted sugar from 2,252 ships; and used of coal and 17,537 barrels of oil. The ''
Brooklyn Citizen The ''Brooklyn Citizen'' was a newspaper serving Brooklyn in New York City from 1887 to 1947. It became influential under editor Andrew McLean (1848-1922), a Scottish immigrant from Renton, West Dunbartonshire. Its offices were located at Fulton ...
'' said in 1941 that the refinery made Brooklyn the center of sugar refining in the United States, similar to how
Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...
manufactured cars and
Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...
manufactured steel.


Decline

As early as the 1920s, industry-wide changes were resulting in a reduction of utilization of the Brooklyn plant. After American Sugar completed a plant in Baltimore in 1922, refining operations in Brooklyn were reduced. The company also assumed space at 120 Wall Street in Manhattan's
Financial District A financial district is usually a central area in a city where financial services firms such as banks, insurance companies, and other related finance corporations have their headquarters offices. In major cities, financial districts often host ...
in 1930, using that space for its offices. The refinery's cooperage closed in 1946 after the industry stopped using wood barrels to ship sugar. Employment at the plant fell after the end of World War II in 1945; the company had 1,500 workers in 1959.
Research and development Research and development (R&D or R+D), known in some countries as OKB, experiment and design, is the set of innovative activities undertaken by corporations or governments in developing new services or products. R&D constitutes the first stage ...
activities were relocated in 1958 to American Sugar's
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
facility. Despite this, the company spent $16 million on expanding the facility in the 1960s. American Sugar was renamed Amstar in 1970, and its New York City office was relocated to
1251 Avenue of the Americas 1251 Avenue of the Americas (formerly known as the Exxon Building) is a skyscraper on Sixth Avenue (also known as Avenue of the Americas), between 49th and 50th Streets, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. It is owned by Mits ...
in 1971. By the late 1970s, the Amstar refinery was the only remaining sugar refinery on the Williamsburg waterfront. The Amstar brand was purchased by British firm
Tate & Lyle Tate & Lyle Public Limited Company is a British-headquartered, global supplier of food and beverage products to food and industrial markets. It was originally a sugar refining business, but from the 1970s, it began to diversify, eventually dive ...
in 1988. Three years later, Amstar became known as Domino Sugar, after its primary trademark. Employment at the Domino Sugar Refinery continued to decrease, and by 1996 the plant had only 450 workers. After union workers' contracts expired in late 1998, Tate & Lyle announced upgrades to the refinery that would eliminate 100 jobs and weaken union guarantees. As a result, 284 workers went on
strike Strike may refer to: People *Strike (surname) * Hobart Huson, author of several drug related books Physical confrontation or removal *Strike (attack), attack with an inanimate object or a part of the human body intended to cause harm * Airstrike, ...
in June 1999. When the strike started, Domino reduced operations at the refinery, performing much of the refining at its Baltimore plant before shipping it to Brooklyn for finishing. The strike ended in February 2001, making it one of the longest-ever in the city's history. Although over a hundred workers defected and returned to work, the remaining striking workers agreed to Tate & Lyle's plan to eliminate 110 positions. American Sugar Refining bought the brand and plant from Tate & Lyle the same year. Though the complex was able to process of sugar a year, it was only processing half that amount by 2002. The next year, American Sugar Refining announced that the Domino Sugar plant would be shuttered due to a lack of demand. The refinery stopped operating in 2004. More than 220 workers were laid off at the end of January 2004, and two dozen workers were retained for packing operations that shuttered by the end of the year.


Redevelopment plans


CPC proposal

The site was purchased by CPC Resources, the for-profit arm of the Community Preservation Corporation, and Brooklyn developer Isaac Katan in July 2004 for $55.8 million. Following a wide-ranging
rezoning In urban planning, zoning is a method in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into land-use "zones", each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for a ...
of the north Brooklyn waterfront the next year, preservationists lobbied to save the Domino Sugar Refinery and other industrial structures on the waterfront. The
Landmarks Preservation Commission The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting New York City's architecturally, historically, and c ...
(LPC) designated the Pan, Filter, and Finishing House as an official city landmark in 2007. Though the yellow "Domino Sugar" sign facing the East River was not part of the designation, the developer proposed keeping the sign by displaying it on top of the Pan, Filter, and Finishing House. CPC's original plan for the site, designed by
Rafael Viñoly Rafael Viñoly Beceiro (1 June 1944 – 2 March 2023) was an Uruguayan-born architect based in New York. He was the principal of Rafael Viñoly Architects, which he founded in 1983. The firm has offices in New York City, Palo Alto, London, Ma ...
, included up to nine buildings, four of which would be over tall. The plan called for 2,200 apartments, 660 of which would be set aside or designated as affordable housing, as well as a school; the "Domino Sugar" sign on the refinery would be preserved. The CPC plan received support from the
New York City Council The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City in the United States. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five boroughs. The council serves as a check against the mayor in a mayor-council government mod ...
in 2010. However, it faced opposition from local residents, who objected to the scale of the proposed development. In 2012, CPC defaulted on its development project for the Domino Sugar Factory. Development company Two Trees Management expressed interest for the site that June and purchased it for $185 million that October.


SHoP proposal

Two Trees submitted a new design plan for the site in 2013, designed by
SHoP Architects SHoP Architects is an architecture firm in Lower Manhattan, New York City, with projects located on five continents. Led by four principals, the firm provides services to residences, commercial buildings, schools and cultural institutions, as we ...
. The new plan called for 60% more public open space on a new street grid, allowed mixed-use zoning, and was designed to connect the existing neighborhood to the new waterfront. Two Trees' plan would still set aside 660 out of the 2,200 apartments for affordable housing, but it would also include buildings of up to 50 stories, which would be some of Brooklyn's tallest buildings. Though some neighborhood residents opposed the redevelopment, this opposition was more limited after Two Trees agreed to add more affordable housing and parkland. One of the proposed buildings was replaced within a plaza. The revised plan faced objection from New York City mayor
Bill de Blasio Bill de Blasio (; born Warren Wilhelm Jr., May 8, 1961; later Warren de Blasio-Wilhelm) is an American politician who was the List of mayors of New York City, 109th mayor of New York City, mayor of New York City from 2014 to 2021. A member of t ...
, who wanted even more affordable housing on the site. In response,
David Walentas David Walentas (born 1938) is an American billionaire real estate developer. Walentas founded Two Trees Management in 1968. Early life and education Walentas was born in Rochester, New York. His father was of Lithuanian descent. When he was fi ...
indicated that he was willing to revert to the older plan. In March 2014, the City Planning Commission approved the new plans, which would have cost $1.5 billion, after Two Trees Management agreed to include more affordable housing units. That deal required Two Trees to include 700 below-market-rate units, which was 40 more than what was originally offered and 260 more than what the CPC wanted. In exchange, Two Trees was allowed to build its towers of up to 55 stories. Three floors would be built on top of the existing factory building.


Redevelopment progress

In 2014, photographer David Allee explored the abandoned portions of the refinery, stating that it smelled of "creme brulee mixed with mold and rot". The same year, from May through July, artist
Kara Walker Kara Elizabeth Walker (born November 26, 1969) is an American contemporary painter, silhouettist, printmaker, installation artist, filmmaker, and professor who explores Race (classification of human beings), race, gender, human sexuality, sexual ...
exhibited her piece ''
A Subtlety ''A Subtlety'' (also known as ''the Marvelous Sugar Baby'' and subtitled ''an Homage to the unpaid and overworked Artisans who have refined our Sweet tastes from the cane fields to the Kitchens of the New World on the Occasion of the demolition of ...
'' at the refinery's Syrup Shed. After the closure of the exhibition, the non-landmarked portions of the refinery were to be demolished, as had been planned before the show. In mid-2014, demolition of the structures commenced; demolition was mostly complete by December 2014. Excavation for the first building in the complex, 325 Kent Avenue, started in May 2015. Two Trees also cleaned out the Pan, Filter, and Finishing House, which still contained its old sugar-refining machinery. In February 2017, the developers of the redevelopment project opened a housing lottery for the 104 affordable-housing apartments at 325 Kent Avenue, which attracted 87,000 applicants, or about 837 for every apartment. 325 Kent Avenue opened in July 2017, and the first residents moved into the building the next month. A second residential building, 260 Kent Avenue, started construction in early 2018. The LPC approved a redesign for the landmarked portion of the refinery complex in November 2017. Domino Park, a public park along the East River waterfront, opened in June 2018. A modification to the landmarked Pan, Filter, and Finishing House was approved in August 2019. The interconnected towers at One South First and Ten Grand opened shortly afterward. One South First opened in September 2019, followed by Ten Grand that November. The first office tenant at Ten Grand signed a lease in December 2019. No other office tenants had signed leases at Ten Grand before the onset of the
COVID-19 pandemic in New York City The first case of the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City was confirmed on March 1, 2020, though later research showed that the novel coronavirus had been circulating in New York City since January, with cases of community transmission confirme ...
in early 2020, which caused demand for physical office space to decline significantly. During the pandemic, Two Trees leased space at Ten Grand to numerous local companies. According to a 2022 analysis by ''
Curbed Curbed is an American real estate and urban design website published by ''New York'' magazine. Founded as a blog by Lockhart Steele in 2006 to cover New York City real estate, it grew by 2010 to feature sub-pages dedicated to specific real ...
'', "85 percent of the founders and principals" of the companies at Ten Grand lived in either Williamsburg or the adjacent neighborhoods of Greenpoint and
Bushwick Bushwick is a neighborhood in the northern part of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. It is bounded by the neighborhood of Ridgewood, Queens, to the northeast; Williamsburg to the northwest; the cemeteries of Highland Park to the southe ...
. By early 2021, the Pan, Filter, and Finishing House, which had been renamed the Refinery, was being renovated. Two Trees opened an affordable-housing lottery for One South First's 89 affordable units in early 2022. That August,
M&T Bank M&T Bank Corporation (Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company) is an American bank holding company headquartered in Buffalo, New York. It operates 950+ branches in 12 states and Washington D.C. across the Eastern United States, from Maine to Vi ...
gave Two Trees an $80 million construction loan to fund the completion of the development. Around the same time, Two Trees began leasing out of office space in the Refinery building. Work on 346 Kent Avenue (later known as One Domino Square), a pair of towers at the southern end of the development, began in November 2022. To finance the construction of 346 Kent Avenue, Two Trees received a $365 million loan from
JPMorgan Chase JPMorgan Chase & Co. (stylized as JPMorganChase) is an American multinational financial services, finance corporation headquartered in New York City and incorporated in Delaware. It is List of largest banks in the United States, the largest ba ...
at the end of that year. In addition, the Refinery building's barrel-vaulted roof was being completed by late 2022, and an LED replica of the old "Domino Sugar" sign was installed on the building that December. The Refinery building reopened September 27, 2023. Two Trees offered
tax break Tax break also known as tax preferences, tax concession, and tax relief, are a method of reduction to the tax liability of taxpayers. Government usually applies them to stimulate the economy and increase the solvency of the population. By this f ...
s to companies that relocated from Manhattan to the Refinery building. Sales at One Domino Square began in April 2024, and the building formally opened in June of that year. The Domino Square plaza opened at the Domino Sugar Refinery site in September 2024, and a housing lottery for One Domino Square's rental apartments was opened the next month. Between 15 and 20 percent of One Domino Square's condos had been sold by late 2024, but only 25% of the Refinery building's space had been leased out. By mid-2025, nearly half of One Domino Square's condos had been sold.


Buildings

The Domino Sugar Refinery site spans on the East River north of the
Williamsburg Bridge The Williamsburg Bridge is a suspension bridge across the East River in New York City, connecting the Lower East Side of Manhattan with the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn. Originally known as the East River Bridge, the Williamsburg Brid ...
. When the redevelopment is complete, it will include of community and commercial space; of office space; 2,800 apartments, of which 700 will be affordable; and of parkland on the waterfront, which is part of Domino Park. The entire complex will eventually contain five residential buildings and cost $3 billion.


Residential and commercial towers


325 Kent Avenue

325 Kent Avenue, a 16-story, tower designed by SHoP Architects, is located on the east side of Kent Avenue. The building contains 522 residential units, 105 of which are affordable-housing apartments, and the units range from
studio apartment A studio apartment, or studio Condominium, condo also known as a studio flat (United Kingdom, UK), self-contained apartment (Nigeria, Ghana), efficiency apartment, bed-sitter (Kenya), or bachelor apartment, is a small apartment, dwelling in ...
s to two-bedroom apartments. 325 Kent Avenue has of residential space and of ground-floor retail space. The building contains amenities such as a rooftop deck, a fitness center, a residents' lounge, and a courtyard on the fourth floor. The lower portion of the facade is made of copper, while the upper portion consists of zinc. The
massing Massing is the architecture, architectural term for general Shape and form (visual arts), shape, form and size of a structure. Characteristics Massing is three-dimensional, a matter of form, not just an outline from a single perspective, a s ...
of the structure consists of two stepped towers on the north and south, which step down gradually from west to east. The tops of the two wings are connected on the western side of the building, creating a rectangular hole on the western facade and giving it a "doughnut" shape.


One South First and Ten Grand

The 45-story One South First tower (also known as 260 Kent Avenue) and the 24-story Ten Grand tower are located between South 1st and South 2nd streets, north of the Pan, Filter, and Finishing House on the western side of Kent Avenue. The structures were designed by Cookfox. One South First contains 330 residential units, 66 of which are affordable-housing apartments; the units range from studios to two-bedroom apartments. Ten Grand contains of retail space and of office space. The combined structure's amenities include a rooftop deck with cabanas, a fitness center, a residents' lounge, a swimming pool, and spaces for
coworking Coworking is an arrangement in which workers for different companies share an office space. It allows cost savings and convenience through the use of common infrastructures, such as equipment, utilities and receptionist and custodial services, a ...
. The buildings comprise a single structure; the massing is designed so that the upper stories of One South First are carried over the top of Ten Grand upon a glass-clad structure. The facade is made of precast concrete, which the architects stated is based on sugar crystals' molecular structure. The panels for One South First generally measure , while the panels for Ten Grand and the shared base measure .


One Domino Square

One Domino Square, at 5 South Fifth Street, is composed of two towers rising from a shared base. It was designed by
Annabelle Selldorf Annabelle Selldorf (born July 5, 1960) is a German-born architect and founding principal of Selldorf Architects, a New York City-based architecture practice. She is a fellow of the American Institute of Architects (FAIA) and the recipient of the 2 ...
and includes 160 condominiums and about 400 rental apartments. About 120 of the rental apartments are
affordable housing Affordable housing is housing which is deemed affordable to those with a household income at or below the median, as rated by the national government or a local government by a recognized housing affordability index. Most of the literature on ...
units and are reserved for low-income residents. The condo tower is 39 stories tall and is the Domino Sugar Refinery complex's only condo tower, while the rental tower is 55 stories tall. The facade of both towers is made of
iridescent Iridescence (also known as goniochromism) is the phenomenon of certain surfaces that appear gradually to change colour as the angle of view or the angle of illumination changes. Iridescence is caused by wave interference of light in microstruc ...
porcelain tiles. The two towers combined have over of space. The podium includes retail on the ground story. There are of amenity space on five additional floors, including terraces, a fitness center, coworking space, and a spa. An elliptical staircase connects three of the amenity floors. The condos range from one to three bedrooms and contain features such as movable windows, rooms with high ceilings, and
smart device A smart device is an electronic device, generally connected to other devices or networks via different wireless protocols (such as Bluetooth, Zigbee, near-field communication, Wi-Fi, NearLink, Li-Fi, or 5G) that can operate to some extent inte ...
s in the kitchens and bathrooms.


Parks

Domino Park runs along the East River waterfront, west of Kent Avenue. Designed by the architectural firm of
James Corner James Corner (born 1961) is a landscape architect and theorist whose works exhibit a focus on "developing innovative approaches toward landscape architectural design and urbanism." His designs of note include Fresh Kills Park on Staten Island and t ...
, the public park includes pieces of machinery from the factory, as well as gardens, a play area for children, and various fields. An elevated walkway runs along the length of the park. River Street runs parallel to the park for the entire length of the development. Just south of the refinery building, and next to Domino Park, is Domino Square, a public plaza. It was designed by Field Operations and Studio Cadena, with Lisa Switkin as the landscape architect. Domino Square is shaped like an oval bowl, which, at its widest point, measures across. There are 120 plantings, as well as several levels of seating. The plantings include pines, oaks,
redbud ''Cercis'' is a genus of about 10 species in the subfamily Cercidoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. It contains small deciduous trees or large shrubs commonly known as redbuds in the USA. They are characterised by simple, rounded to heart-sha ...
trees, and flowers within steel planters; Switkin said these plantings were meant to allude to a forest in the northeastern United States. The plaza itself is paved in asphalt, and there is a
reclaimed water Water reclamation is the process of converting Sewage, municipal wastewater or sewage and Industrial wastewater treatment, industrial wastewater into water that can be reused for a variety of purposes. It is also called wastewater reuse, water re ...
system underneath the plaza, which treats recycled water from the complex's buildings. The interior of the bowl can be used as a
theater in the round Theatre-in-the-round, also known as arena theatre or central staging, is a theatrical stage configuration in which the audience surrounds the performance area on all sides. Historically rooted in ancient Greece and Rome performance practices, ...
, an event space, or a wintertime ice rink. Around the plaza are retail spaces.


Refinery

When the refinery was rebuilt in 1882–1883, it was composed of several structures on the west side of Kent Avenue between South 2nd and South 6th streets. It was described upon its completion as being the largest sugar refinery in the Americas. The Pan, Filter, and Finishing House is located between South 2nd and South 3rd streets. Immediately adjacent, between South 3rd and South 4th streets, was a 6-story storehouse and a machine shop. The block between South 4th and South 5th streets was a 7-story refinery building, while the block to the south was a single-story detached storehouse. Only the Pan, Filter, and Finishing House remains of the refinery complex.


Pan, Filter, and Finishing House

The extant structure of the refinery consists of the Pan, Filter, and Finishing House (also known as the Refinery building), a New York City designated landmark designed by Theodore Havemeyer, Thomas Winslow, and J. E. James. The building is at 292 Kent Avenue between South 2nd and South 3rd streets.


= Form and facade

= The 10-story pan house and Finishing House sections are tall, while the 13-story filter house section is tall, including a chimney. These structures are interconnected and measured north–south by west–east. The Pan, Filter, and Finishing House was one of the tallest buildings in Brooklyn when finished, rivaling the heights of
early skyscrapers The earliest stage of skyscraper design encompasses buildings built between 1884 and 1945, predominantly in the American cities of New York City, New York and Chicago. Cities in the United States were traditionally made up of low-rise buildings, ...
in
Lower Manhattan Lower Manhattan, also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York City, is the southernmost part of the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The neighborhood is History of New York City, the historical birthplace o ...
's
Financial District A financial district is usually a central area in a city where financial services firms such as banks, insurance companies, and other related finance corporations have their headquarters offices. In major cities, financial districts often host ...
. The Pan, Filter, and Finishing House is made mostly of reddish brick, which are thick on the lower stories and thick on the upper stories. The massing has no setbacks, though the facade has decorative elements on the upper stories. On the eastern facade, along Kent Avenue, there are vertical brick
pilaster In architecture, a pilaster is both a load-bearing section of thickened wall or column integrated into a wall, and a purely decorative element in classical architecture which gives the appearance of a supporting column and articulates an ext ...
s. On the western facade, facing the East River, the facade contains bricks that are recessed to form patterns such as chevrons and polygons. In some places, bluestone was used in
belt course A belt course, also called a string course or sill course, is a continuous row or layer of stones or brick set in a wall. Set in line with window sills, it helps to make the horizontal line of the sills visually more prominent. Set between the ...
s and
keystones A keystone (or capstone) is the wedge-shaped stone at the apex of a masonry arch or typically round-shaped one at the apex of a vault. In both cases it is the final piece placed during construction and locks all the stones into position, allo ...
. Most of the windows have brick arches. The building was fueled by coal, which required a chimney to ventilate safely. The chimney was among the region's tallest when the Pan, Filter, and Finishing House was built. The top section of the chimney was expanded in the 1920s using curved brick. To deliver coal to the refinery, American Sugar used ten coal barges, each with a capacity of between .
Vishaan Chakrabarti Vishaan Chakrabarti (born November, 29 1966) is an American architect and professor. He is the founder of Practice for Architecture and Urbanism (PAU), which is an architecture firm based in New York. In 2018 he was named a fellow of the American ...
of Practice for Architecture and Urbanism designed a conversion of the building in 2017. The plans include adding a new glass facade with a barrel vault behind the existing, landmarked walls of the Pan, Filter, and Finishing House. The glass roof was originally proposed to be high, but plans for the structure were modified in 2019, calling for a glass roof tall. The new structure rises 15 stories to the barrel vault, and a penthouse measuring tall is placed immediately below the vault. The shape of the roof was inspired by the arched window openings that are placed throughout the original facade. A reviewer for the ''
Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...
'' wrote in 2023 that the Refinery building was "an object from another age, a time when Brooklyn was a place of production rather than consumption".


= Interior

= The interior was outfitted with brick floors atop brick flat-topped arches, which were supported by iron beams and 66 cast-iron columns. Fire escapes, fire extinguishers, and electric lights were also present in the Pan, Filter, and Finishing House. The interior of the building was converted to of office space in the 2020s. As part of the interior renovation, the ceiling heights of floors 1–4, 14, and 15 were increased, while floor 16 was eliminated. The ground floor is used for retail and also contains restrooms for Domino Park visitors. The building also has a fitness club with a gym and swimming pool. Floors 2–13 are used as office space, and floor 14 has a double-height event space with a catering kitchen and service areas. Each story covers . Above the first story, the glass office structure is recessed from the landmarked facade, and each story is high. The structure's staircases are between the landmarked facade and the glass structure. A wall garden is also placed between the new office structure and the landmarked facade. There is no usable space between the old and new facades, except at ground level where the window sills of the new facade reach the floor.


Former buildings

The former buildings at the refinery include the Syrup Shed, the Wash House, the Turbine Room, the Power House, and the Pump House. Several
gantry crane A gantry crane is a Crane (machine), crane built atop a wikt:gantry, gantry, which is a structure used to straddle an object or workspace. They can range from enormous "full" gantry cranes, capable of lifting some of the heaviest loads in the wor ...
s were situated on the waterfront, unloading sugar. The cranes ran on tracks that were long. The complex also contained a "bin structure" in which sugar grains were categorized by size, as well as conveyor bridges leading down to the refinery building. A yellow "Domino Sugar" sign, dating from the 1920s, was hung on one of the buildings facing the waterfront. In December 2022, a replica of the old sign was installed on the Pan, Filter, and Finishing House. In contrast to the original neon sign, the replica contains letters illuminated by LEDs. A two-story boiler house was located along the East River, west of the refinery building. A warehouse was located adjacent to the boiler house. Five large pumps drew in of
saltwater Saline water (more commonly known as salt water) is water that contains a high concentration of dissolved salts (mainly sodium chloride). On the United States Geological Survey (USGS) salinity scale, saline water is saltier than brackish wat ...
from the East River, which was used for the condensers and then pumped back out. The refinery also used large amounts of
fresh water Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salt (chemistry), salts and other total dissolved solids. The term excludes seawater and brackish water, but it does include ...
: in 1903, it was estimated that the refinery alone used two percent of Brooklyn's water supply.


See also

*
History of sugar The history of sugar has five main phases: # The extraction of sugar cane juice from the sugarcane plant, and the subsequent domestication of the plant in tropical India and Southeast Asia sometime around 4,000 Anno Domini, BC. # The invention o ...
*
List of New York City Designated Landmarks in Brooklyn The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC), formed in 1965, is the New York City governmental commission that administers the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. Since its founding, it has designated over a thousand landmarks, clas ...


References

Informational notes Citations Bibliography * * * *


External links

* * {{Williamsburg, Brooklyn 1882 establishments in New York (state) Sugar industry of the United States Buildings and structures in Brooklyn Historic American Engineering Record in New York City Industrial buildings and structures in New York City Industrial buildings completed in 1882 Mill architecture New York City Designated Landmarks in Brooklyn Redevelopment projects in the United States Sugar refineries in the United States Williamsburg, Brooklyn