In fall 2023, Two Trees Management, a Brooklyn real estate development company, began opening the first phase of the new Refinery at Domino, the crown jewel of the 11-acre Domino Sugar Refinery project. The result is Brooklyn’s iconic new waterfront structure, designed by PAU, transformed into a 15-story, 460,000-square-foot, mixed-use office and retail space.

© Max Touhey

The building features floor-to-ceiling windows and office tenants have access to many on-site amenities, including a 27,000-square-foot, glass dome penthouse with sweeping 360-degree views used as communal workspaces; a private club; and event spaces. The building also houses 60,000 square feet of retail space, complete with a fitness club, an indoor pool and full-service gym. Employees can also utilize a dedicated bicycle lobby with a separate entrance ramp and secure bike parking.

In addition to Domino’s existing food and beverage options nearby, like Tacocina and Misi by Missy Robbins, The Refinery will soon bring additional dining options to the ground-floor space that opens into Domino Park. Adjacent to The Refinery, the 1-acre Domino Square is an outdoor events and programming venue that completes the 6-acre Domino Park complex.

© Max Touhey

PAU’s designers somehow found a way to place a brand-new glass building on top of, and within, the existing brick facade, with a 12-foot gap between the new and the old to achieve standardized floor heights. The gap also creates a light and airy perimeter to provide maximum light and access to the outdoors throughout the day.

Inside the 12-foot space between the glass curtain wall and the masonry exterior is a green ecosystem consisting of 17 30-foot American sweet gum and native pin oak trees, as well as lush plantings. This introduces a new way of designing a biophilic office, with a first-of-its-kind vertical garden lining the entire perimeter of the building.

The original Domino Sugar Refinery was a landmark building important to the development of the Brooklyn waterfront throughout the 19^th and 20^th centuries. Today, the structural remains are symbolic of New York City’s rich architectural history during America’s industrial revolution.

© Max Touhey

Theodore Havemeyer designed the original Refinery to be heavily influenced by the Romanesque Revival, with round-arch windows the key feature of this style. In response to an 1882 fire, Havemeyer used iron as opposed to wood structuring, outfitting the tower with new fireproof and structural technologies. After 120 years in operation, the Refinery closed in 2004, prompting the New York Landmarks Preservation Commission to name the Refinery complex a historic landmark site in 2007.

The old Havemeyer building contains a chimney more than 214 feet tall and features different styles and sizes of windows that will remain open. The sugar manufacturing machinery housed inside the building has been repurposed, placed throughout Domino Park as historical relics. An energy-efficient LED replica of the iconic “Domino Sugar” neon sign adorns the top of the building matching the original dimensions. For older residents of Manhattan’s East Side who grew up looking at the large, original Domino Sugar signage every day, the new iteration is both sad and comforting.

This year, the One Domino Square residential building and 1-acre Domino Square community event space opens. Two Trees Management will eventually construct 2,800 apartments across four residential buildings, 700 affordable to low-income residents. Of the remaining space, 600,000 square feet will be designate commercial office space, and 200,000 square feet as retail at the Domino site.