Domino Sugar Refinery facts for kids
The refinery seen in 2012; the filter, pan, and finishing house (left) is still standing, while ancillary structures (right) have been demolished
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| Location | Brooklyn, New York | ||||||||||||||||
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| Address | Kent Avenue | ||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 40°42′52″N 73°58′03″W / 40.71444°N 73.96750°W | ||||||||||||||||
| Status | Under construction | ||||||||||||||||
| Estimated completion | 2025 | ||||||||||||||||
| Opening |
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| Use | Mixed-use | ||||||||||||||||
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| Architect |
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| Developer | Two Trees Management | ||||||||||||||||
| Planner | SHoP Architects | ||||||||||||||||
| Technical details | |||||||||||||||||
| Cost | $3 billion | ||||||||||||||||
| Buildings | 5 | ||||||||||||||||
| Leasable area | 600,000 square feet (56,000 m2) of office space, 200,000 square feet (19,000 m2) of retail space | ||||||||||||||||
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The Domino Sugar Refinery is a large building complex in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York City. It used to be a huge factory where sugar was made. Now, it's being turned into a modern area with homes, offices, and a park.
This famous refinery sits along the East River. It was once run by the Havemeyer family and their company, the American Sugar Refining Company. They made the well-known Domino brand sugar.
The first sugar factory here opened in 1856. After a big fire destroyed it, the current buildings were constructed in 1882. At its busiest in 1919, the factory employed 4,500 people. It was the largest sugar plant in the United States.
The refinery continued to make sugar until 2004. Then, it started a new life. Today, it's becoming a lively place with new buildings and a beautiful park called Domino Park. One part of the old factory, the Filter, Pan, and Finishing House, is a special New York City landmark.
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The Original Sugar Factory
Brooklyn's waterfront became a busy industrial area in the 1800s. Places like the Brooklyn Navy Yard and Industry City grew. Williamsburg, a village in northern Brooklyn, also grew quickly after joining the city of Brooklyn in 1855. Many businesses were built along the waterfront.
The Havemeyer family started their first sugar factory in Manhattan in 1807. By the 1840s, it was a huge ten-story building. Frederick C. Havemeyer Jr. helped the family business become a very large sugar company.
Early Days in Williamsburg
John C. Havemeyer, Frederick Jr.'s nephew, opened the first family factory in Williamsburg in 1856. It was called Havemeyer & Bertrand. Later, it became Havemeyer & Elder. This factory, also known as the Yellow Sugar House, was the biggest Havemeyer plant.
By 1870, Williamsburg was the world's largest sugar-refining center. It produced most of the sugar used in the United States. Raw sugar arrived directly at the factory by ship because the East River was deep enough.
Rebuilding After a Fire
On January 8, 1882, a fire destroyed the original refinery. It caused about $1.5 million in damage and meant 1,200 to 2,000 people lost their jobs. The fire even made sugar prices go up across the country.
Theodore Havemeyer quickly bought another refinery so they could keep working. Plans for a new, fireproof factory were submitted. The new buildings were finished by July 1883, costing $7 million.
How the Factory Operated
The new refinery was huge and gave the Havemeyer family a big advantage. By 1884, it employed 1,000 men and made 5,000 barrels of sugar every day. In 1891, the company became the American Sugar Refining Company.
By 1894, it was called "the largest of its kind in the world." It had seven buildings and employed 3,000 workers. It produced 13,000 barrels of sugar daily. In 1896, American Sugar was one of the first companies in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Later, it was renamed "Domino’s Sugar."
Many types of sugar were made here. Raw sugar came from 40 different countries. It was unloaded from ships, mixed with water, and then filtered. The mixture was boiled in giant "vacuum pans" that were 32 feet tall. Then, it went through machines called centrifuges to separate the sugar from molasses. Finally, the sugar was dried and packed into barrels.
Working conditions were tough, and pay was low. Workers often worked ten hours or more a day. Most early workers were German immigrants, then later immigrants from other parts of Europe and the Caribbean. Wages were low, but conditions improved in the early 1900s with better pay and some pensions.
Later Years and Decline
In 1907, American Sugar built a railroad to move sugar around. In 1917, during World War I, an explosion damaged part of the plant, killing several workers. It was caused by sugar dust catching fire.
By 1919, the refinery had over 4,500 employees. The company wanted to close some nearby streets to control the land better. Local people opposed this, but the city eventually allowed it in 1924.
In 1926, American Sugar spent $3 million to update the factory. They built a new dock and a large warehouse. Around this time, a huge "Domino Sugar" sign was put on one of the buildings, facing the East River. By 1941, the refinery made 60 different kinds of sugar. It was a very important part of Brooklyn's economy.
Factory Slows Down
Changes in the sugar industry led to less work at the Brooklyn plant. After World War II, the number of workers dropped. By 1959, only 1,500 people worked there.
In 1970, American Sugar was renamed Amstar. By the late 1970s, it was the only sugar refinery left on the Williamsburg waterfront. In 1988, a British company, Tate & Lyle, bought Amstar. Three years later, the company became Domino Sugar.
By 1996, only 450 workers were left. In 1999, many workers went on strike for better contracts. The strike lasted until 2001. In 2003, American Sugar Refining announced the plant would close due to low demand. The refinery stopped operating in 2004, and over 220 workers lost their jobs.
New Life for the Refinery
In 2004, a company bought the 11-acre site for $55.8 million. People wanted to save the old refinery buildings. In 2007, the Pan, Filter, and Finishing House was made a city landmark. The famous yellow "Domino Sugar" sign was also planned to be saved.
An early plan for the site included nine buildings and 2,200 apartments. This plan was approved in 2010 but faced opposition from locals who thought it was too big. In 2012, another company, Two Trees Management, bought the site for $185 million.
SHoP Architects' Plan
Two Trees Management proposed a new plan in 2013, designed by SHoP Architects. This plan included more public park space and connected the new buildings to the waterfront. It still had 2,200 apartments, with 660 set aside for affordable housing. Some buildings would be as tall as 50 stories.
After some discussions about affordable housing, the new plans were approved in March 2014. The redevelopment would cost $1.5 billion. The deal meant 700 affordable housing units would be built.
Building the New Domino
In 2014, parts of the old refinery that were not landmarks were torn down. Excavation for the first new building, 325 Kent Avenue, began in May 2015. The Pan, Filter, and Finishing House was also cleaned out.
In February 2017, a lottery was held for the 104 affordable apartments at 325 Kent Avenue. About 87,000 people applied! 325 Kent Avenue opened in July 2017.
Domino Park, a public park along the East River, opened in June 2018. Two more towers, One South First and Ten Grand, opened in 2019.
New Buildings and Park
The Domino Sugar Refinery site covers 11 acres along the East River. When finished, it will have 200,000 square feet of shops and community spaces. It will also have 600,000 square feet of office space. There will be 2,800 apartments, with 700 of them being affordable. Plus, there will be 6 acres of parkland, which is part of Domino Park. The whole project will have five residential buildings and cost $3 billion.
Homes and Offices
325 Kent Avenue
325 Kent Avenue is a 16-story building designed by Audrey Matlock Architects. It has 522 apartments, including 105 affordable ones. The building also has shops on the ground floor.
It has cool features like a rooftop deck, a fitness center, and a lounge for residents. The building's outside is made of copper and zinc. It has a unique "doughnut" shape with a rectangular hole in the middle.
One South First and Ten Grand
The 45-story One South First tower and the 24-story Ten Grand tower are next to the old factory building. They were designed by Cookfox. One South First has 330 apartments, with 66 being affordable.
Ten Grand has office space and shops. These buildings share amenities like a rooftop deck, a swimming pool, and spaces for working together. The outside of the buildings uses concrete panels that look like sugar crystals.
Domino Park
Domino Park is a public park along the East River waterfront. It was designed by James Corner. The park includes old machinery from the factory, gardens, a play area for kids, and sports fields. There's also an elevated walkway along the park.
The Old Refinery Building
The Pan, Filter, and Finishing House is the main part of the old refinery that remains. It's a New York City landmark. This building is made of reddish brick and is very tall. The pan house and finishing house sections are 130 feet tall, and the filter house section is 155 feet tall, including a chimney. When it was built, it was one of the tallest buildings in Brooklyn.
The building's walls are very thick, up to 4 feet at the bottom. The outside has cool brick patterns. It used a 155-foot chimney to let out smoke from burning coal. Inside, it had brick floors and iron beams. This building will be turned into 380,000 square feet of office space.
What Used to Be There
Other buildings at the refinery included the Syrup Shed, Wash House, and Power House. Large cranes on the waterfront unloaded sugar from ships. There was also a "bin structure" to sort sugar and conveyor bridges. The famous yellow "Domino Sugar" sign will be put back on the Pan, Filter, and Finishing House.
The refinery used a lot of water. In 1903, it used two percent of all the water in Brooklyn!
Images for kids
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The refinery seen in 2012; the filter, pan, and finishing house (left) is still standing, while ancillary structures (right) have been demolished
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Domino Sugar Refinery behind the East River, as seen from Manhattan to the west
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As seen from the Williamsburg Bridge to the south
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Domino Park, looking east toward 325 Kent Avenue
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Pan, Filter, and Finishing House, seen from the south
