Domino Park in New York City by James Corner Field Operations

Reclaimed sugar-refining and industrial artifacts and remnants are interspersed throughout the site, uncovering the story of the sugar trade in New York and the sugar refining process that occurred on the site for over a century. Built in 1856 on the Williamsburg waterfront the Domino Sugar Factory was one of the largest sugar manufacturing facilities in the world. Following the closure of the Domino Sugar Factory in 2004, the site sat dormant as plans for redevelopment were debated by the city, community stakeholders, and the development team. The adaptive reuse of the landmarked Refinery embraces four new mixed-use residential buildings including 700 units of affordable housing. The total investment in the privately-funded public park is USD 50 million.

Domino Park is organized into three distinct programmatic areas, transitioning from more active uses near the Williamsburg Bridge at the southernmost end of the site to more passive uses at the northern end of the site.

Drawing on the history of the 4.5 ha industrial site and the landmarked Refinery building, the five-block long Artifact Walk at the north end of the site integrates over 30 large-scale, handpicked pieces of salvaged factory machinery along the waterfront. The Artifact Walk also includes 21 columns from the Raw Sugar Warehouse and approximately 180 m of crane tracks from the site that is incorporated into the design of the park. It also features four 11-m-tall cylindrical tanks that collected syrup during the refining process, mooring bollards, bucket elevators, and various dials and meters from the factory with original signage.

Waterfront esplanade and passive recreation area

The 366-m-long waterfront esplanade provides a continuous walk along the East River with panoramic views of the Manhattan skyline and Williamsburg Bridge. At the northern end of Domino Park, the passive recreation area includes a Japanese Pine garden at the entry, a 100-person picnic area, a food kiosk, a children’s playground inspired by the sugar-refining process, a large sloping lawn, and an urban beach with a flat shaded lawn area and chaises longues.

What was the reason for including Domino Park as a public recreation area in the develop­ment plan?

We promised the community early on that we would deliver a waterfront space which before had been locked to the surrounding community for over 150 years. The park brings people from all over Brooklyn, and the City, to enjoy a beautiful, interpretive space.

If you had a wish, how would you modify or extend Domino Park?

We hope to have a new ferry line at Domino Park so our Domino development residents can walk through the park every day and provide additional transportation for the Williamsburg community.

How do you see the importance of public recreational facilities for real estate developers in the near future?

The importance of public recreational spaces has always been of high value to people, especially in New York and Williamsburg, where the park space per capita is very low. We hope our model encourages other developers to design stellar public spaces to convene a community around a beautiful space.