New Domino Plans Falter at LPC Hearing
At yesterday’s LPC hearing about plans for the recently landmarked Domino refinery, preservationists criticized the building’s proposed 5-story glass addition while the project’s developer argued that the alterations to the building were necessary to offset the creation of affordable housing. None of the commissioners seemed too keen on the glass box addition, according to a…
At yesterday’s LPC hearing about plans for the recently landmarked Domino refinery, preservationists criticized the building’s proposed 5-story glass addition while the project’s developer argued that the alterations to the building were necessary to offset the creation of affordable housing. None of the commissioners seemed too keen on the glass box addition, according to a report on Gowanus Lounge, and neither did other preservationists. Lisa Kersavage, director of advocacy and policy for the Municipal Arts Society, said the proposal missed the opportunity to preserve some of the most interesting and distinctive architecture on the waterfront and to assimilate the memory of Brooklyn’s industrial heritage into its new life, and Frampton Tolbert, deputy director of the Historic Districts Council, called the addition architecturally incongruous. The fact that the iconic Domino sign is missing from the renderings also caused concern, and LPC chairman Robert B. Tierney said the developers should look hard for a place to incorporate it. Michael Lappin, the president and CEO of CPC Resources (which is developing the site along with Isaac Katan), talked up the affordable housing aspect of the development (about 660 units). The present needs are not for bigger or faster centrifuges, vats, or char-burning furnaces, but for housing, affordable housing, said Lappin. We are proudly proposing a striking five story modern addition to the top of the industrial structures. The LPC didn’t take a vote on the proposal at the meeting, sending the plan more or less back to the drawing board.
Plans for Domino Sugar Refinery Elicit Criticism [NY Times]
No Action on Domino’s Big Glass Box [Gowanus Lounge]
More Domino Plans [Brownstoner]
Domino Sugar Factory Proposed Addition Revealed [Brownstoner]
BREAKING! LPC Approves Historic Designation for Domino [Brownstoner]
CPC Shows and Tells Its Plans for Domino [Brownstoner] GMAP
Plans for ‘New Domino’ Released by City Planning [Brownstoner]
New Domino rendering courtesy of Rafael Viñoly Architects; snapshot of old Domino sign from PhotoJeff.
“I have a hard time with developers getting righteously indignant and threatening the loss of affordable housing when they can’t get their way. If they TRULY had a firm commitment and burning desire to build affordable housing, then they would, glass addition or no glass addition. I fail to see how a glass hat adds so much value that it is the lynchpin of the entire project.”
HEAR HEAR
10:20 you are crazy. the L isn’t even remotely as bad as the 6, yet don’t hear the same complaints. and, i have never not gotten on the L. ever. i lived off the 77th street stop on the 6 like 15 years ago and would wait 2-3 trains everyday. the city is working on running the L train as fast as possible too.
also, these people would most likely take the JMZ, and with all the other waterfront developments coming in, do hope that the city will step up the water taxi service.
i personally would love to see another pedestrian bridge from N.7th to the east village.
as it is, i do walk over the williamsburg bridge 1-2x per week as do many others (or bike it).
don’t forget, some will take car services/taxi’s back and forth over the bridge too.
coming from manhattan to williamsburg in a cab is really easy and quick generally. i never have issues even at rush hour.
Does it really support preservation to always be anti-condos and obsessed with height and context?
The only people who have even CLOSE to the money it takes to preserve an old building this big are condo developers. If the condo developers can’t build a certain number of units and number of floors, there’s no profit and therefore no incentive for them. So being denied, they abandon the project and like way too many buildings in Brooklyn the building sits empty and crumbling and getting worse and more expensive to save, every year that goes by.
Nice plan! That works really really well.
not very compelling
I have a hard time with developers getting righteously indignant and threatening the loss of affordable housing when they can’t get their way. If they TRULY had a firm commitment and burning desire to build affordable housing, then they would, glass addition or no glass addition. I fail to see how a glass hat adds so much value that it is the lynchpin of the entire project.
Good for LPC. Just saving the building isn’t enough. Something worthy should be done with it, or the people who hate landmarking anything are right, it’s just a pile of bricks. I hope some creative solution can be found. And the sign should be there, that’s a part of the history and the waterfront.
See http://hdcvoice.blogspot.com/2008/02/playing-with-dominos.html
for HDC’s full statement.
Thank god for LPC otherwise all the disgusting, greedy, tasteless developers would ruin our city more than they have already.
Seriously, can anyone defend this lazy attempt to rework the old domino factory? They stuck a glass box on top, that’s it.
this is bogus. the building is nothing pretty to look at as it stands and the LPC should be drawn and quartered.