Domino Square Building
Domino Square Building
Domino Square Building
Domino Square Building
Domino Square Building
Domino Square Building
Domino Square Building
The capstone on the Domino Sugar Factory master plan — a project led by SHoP Architects and Field Operations for developer Two Trees Management that transformed an industrial site in Williamsburg into a mixed-use marvel — deftly marries past and present. When Studio Cadena first got involved in the creation of Domino Square, the scope of work was a simple support structure for concessions and facilities. But as the firm began to shape the design, in collaboration with Field Operations, it evolved to become so much more.
A vibrant plaza, the finished building houses support spaces for the park as well as street-facing retail that activates the public realm. Its textural sandblasted concrete facade feels of a piece with the industrial locale and is resilient enough to stand up to the coastal climate. On the waterfront elevation, however, the building’s hard exterior softens to embrace the site’s natural grade change, stepping down to create an amphitheatre-like form rendered in warm wood and Corten steel. The tiered seating wraps around a central plaza, conceived as an “urban room” with the flexibility to host activities as diverse as ice skating and movie nights. A counterpoint to the dense surrounding development, the square takes on a more human scale, opening views and access to the East River to foster a clear sense of place.
Domino Square Building’s other defining move is its zigzagging roofline, which forms a series of planting beds that range in depth and are outfitted with native species and permeable surfaces that support stormwater management and reduce urban heat. Save for the tubular ducts that punctuate the landscape, you’d never know that the structure sits atop a new water treatment facility built to reduce reliance on municipal infrastructure and mitigate flood risk. Aptly described by the firms as a “layered hybrid of architecture, landscape and infrastructure,” the project demonstrates a sensitivity to scale, context and the human experience.
Team: Benjamin Cadena (Studio Cadena) with Lisa Tziona Switkin (Field Operations); Benjamin Pimentel (Rosenwasser/Grossman); Colette
A vibrant plaza, Studio Cadena’s Domino Square Building activates the public realm with retail and support spaces for a Brooklyn park.
