Construction has begun at the last parcel of land at the old Domino sugar site, marking the beginning of the end of a 12-year-long project.
A 545-high mixed-use building will soon rise at Domino Site B, sandwiched between 1 South First and the Domino Sugar Refinery on the Williamsburg waterfront. It will complete Two Trees’ redevelopment of the 11-acre site, which was first rezoned for development back in 2014.
The development, which does not yet have a snappy name like its neighbors at 325 Kent and 1 Domino Square, will include more than 1,200 units — 315 of which will be earmarked as affordable. An additional 105 affordable units will be constructed “offsite,” per zoning documents.
A rezoning of the already-rezoned lot was approved by the City Council late last month, after Two Trees sought to make adjustments to the design it had pitched in 2014. The original design included a skybridge between the two slightly-shorter towers and a 70-foot-tall “podium” connecting them at the base, as well as a slightly smaller footprint and a smooth glass facade.
But after constructing three other buildings and renovating the sugar refinery, Two Trees had learned some lessons, and made some tweaks, said spokesperson Dave Lombino.
“Part of our intention from the beginning was to make sure the whole site was integrated into the community and didn’t feel like a separate campus,” Lombino said. “With that in mind, we’ve used a different architect on each building and we’ve done little kind of clean-up ULURPs for each site to adjust the design, to make it make sense.”
The new-and-approved design does not include a skybridge, and the podium is slightly shorter — in part because the School Construction Authority has nixed its original plan to build a new elementary school in the building. Every unit will have a balcony and the building will feature a wavy, more modern facade.
City of Yes deductions allowed Two Trees to add 100 additional units, Lombino said, 20% of which will be “affordable at low [Area Median Income.]” The rezoning will also allow the building to include more two-and-three bedroom apartments.
Affordability at other Two Trees buildings on the Domino site has varied. At One South First, affordable units were available for 80%-130% AMI, with rents starting at $1,550 for a studio apartment and topping out at $3,169 for a two-bedroom, when the lottery opened in 2022. Prices at One Domino Square were higher, with apartments available at 125%-130% AMI, or $2,832-$4,415, depending on unit size.
While rezonings are often contentious — especially along the Williamsburg waterfront — the slight tweaks to Domino Site B were largely welcomed. Community Board 1 approved the changes unanimously, and Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso gave his stamp of approval.
Council Member Lincoln Restler, who negotiated with Two Trees to secure some community benefits as part of the rezoning, also gave the project a thumbs-up.
“Two Trees proposed some thoughtful modifications to their original plan that will generate even more affordable housing, even more total units, without significantly modifying the size and bulk of the building,” he said.
The developer also agreed to implement some public improvements, he said. As part of the rezoning agreement, Two Trees will extend the the protected bike lane on Kent Avenue along the full length of the Domino site, to about South 5th Street — it currently ends at South 1st Street — add new tree beds and street trees to the soon-to-be-widened sidewalks, and pay to renovate the schoolyard at nearby J.H.S. 126.
Restler said that the Domino project has been “an overall positive” for the nabe.
“Two Trees is a developer that cares about creating better neighborhoods and is thoughtful about the parks and open spaces they build for the whole community, the retail spaces that really meet the needs of neighbors, the jobs that are created for longtime residents,” Restler said.
The council member was frustrated by the School Construction Authority’s decision not to build a new elementary school on the site, though, and said the agency did not contact his office or any other local leaders to explain the about-face.
“That ship sailed, and we’ve been working closely with Two Trees to make sure that this final phase of the project is a positive one for the whole community,” he said.
Domino Site B should be completed and ready to welcome residents in about three years, Lombino said. That will be a “big milestone” for Two Trees and the Domino project, he added.
“We’re looking at 13 years of enormous effort on the part of folks here at Two Trees,” Lombino said. “I think certainly, the most rewarding piece has been Domino Park, to see how it’s been embraced by the community, to see it flourish has been, I speak for myself, the most rewarding experience of my professional career.”
After the Domino site is finished, Two Trees will turn its attention just a little further down Kent Avenue, to River Ring, a massive pair of waterfront towers planned to include more than 1,000 apartments, commercial space, and a waterfront park with recreational space extending into the East River. The project was approved by the City Council in 2021 after a long and continuous ULURP review.
