Happy New Year from Williamsburg’s Domino Park

Eye On Real Estate

By Lore Croghan

January 2, 2019

Here’s a sweet way to start 2019: Stroll around the scenic new park that surrounds the landmarked Domino Sugar Refinery.

Weather.com predicts that starting on Thursday, Brooklyn’s going to have a significant stretch of 40-plus-degree weather, which is a treat this time of year.

The prospect of warmish temps makes a walk on the East River’s shoreline sound like great fun.

Six-acre Domino Park will keep your eyeballs engaged.

If the weather gets warm enough, people will come out and sit on these lounge chairs in Domino Park.

The park’s got a quarter-mile-long shoreline expanse with an esplanade alongside it.

This waterfront walkway offers great views of the Empire State Building and the rest of Midtown’s iconic skyline. You can see the World Trade Center, too.

If the weather warms up enough, you might want to try out the lounge chairs lined up along the esplanade where you can sit and watch the river flow, as Bob Dylan would say.

The park, which stretches from Grand Street to South 5th Street, is open to the public, free of charge.

Two Trees Management spent $50 million to build it.

Salvaged syrup tanks stand tall in Domino Park.

Lights in Domino Park punctuate this view of the sugar refinery, which will be turned into an office complex.

A bird’s eye view of an 1880s refinery

It’s part of the developer’s Domino Sugar Refinery residential, office and retail mega-development.

James Corner Field Operations designed Domino Park, which opened in June. Brooklyn artist Mark Reigelman designed its playground equipment, which looks like a miniature version of an old-fashioned sugar refinery.

Domino Park's got groovy playground equipment. You can see the Empire State Building in the distance. — Domino Park’s got groovy playground equipment. You can see the Empire State Building in the distance.

The place to go for a bird’s eye view of the park is up a staircase to an elevated walkway made of salvaged bits of refinery equipment. Two Trees culled the equipment from Domino factories it demolished to make way for new buildings such as 260 Kent Ave., which is rising skyward.

Let's go upstairs to Domino Park's elevated Artifact Walk. — Let’s go upstairs to Domino Park’s elevated Artifact Walk.

Here's a look at the Artifact Walk with the landmarked Domino Sugar Refinery in the backdrop. — Here’s a look at the Artifact Walk with the landmarked Domino Sugar Refinery in the backdrop.

Here's a glimpse from Domino Park of a building Two Trees Management is constructing at 260 Kent Ave. — Here’s a glimpse from Domino Park of a building Two Trees Management is constructing at 260 Kent Ave.

The Walentas family’s company of course left the landmarked Havemeyers & Elder Filter, Pan & Finishing House standing.

The American round-arch-style refinery at 292-314 Kent Ave. was constructed in the early 1880s.

Two Trees plans to construct modern, glass-walled office space with a barrel-vaulted roof inside the brick refinery.

You’ll want to stay in Domino Park long enough to see the setting sun drop behind the Williamsburg Bridge and paint a silvery stripe on the waters of the East River.