Two Trees

To boost Domino Park’s online discoverability, the Big Human team integrated essential SEO best practices directly into the design and development process (this built-in approach helps websites outperform ones optimized only after launch). Our two-fold strategy targeted branded keywords associated with Domino Park to improve its rankings for its own name and related content, as well as relevant non-branded keywords for higher visibility.

We also provided recommendations for the site’s structure and content, including title and word count suggestions for both the main pages and on-site magazine, to boost organic traffic and position Domino Park as a top Brooklyn destination.

Building on Domino Park’s existing brand guidelines, Big Human infused the website and its UI elements with a “nature within the city” theme, inspired by the refinery’s history, surroundings, and natural elements.

We sampled hues from the park’s calming atmosphere including soft blues, greens, and grays drawn from the sky, water, natural greenery, and concrete surroundings. Since Domino Park is an outdoor space influenced by the weather, we also developed two color themes the Domino Park team can alternate between depending on the season.

To marry Domino Sugar Refinery’s history with a modern brand identity, we kept Domino Park’s existing Ano typeface for all headlines but brought in Courier for the website’s body copy. Courier evokes the technical nature and industrial aesthetic of the refinery, but it also elevates the website’s layouts and enhances readability.

As another delicate reference to “nature in an urban space,” we set all of the website’s elements within a structured grid featuring large typography and containers. By giving content more breathing room, the site cultivates an open, inviting atmosphere.

The shapes found in nature are organic and free-flowing, so Big Human designers opted for rounded corners instead of harsh right angles for all of the website’s containers. This contrasts the refinery’s commercial setting, bringing a sense of fluidity that reflects Domino Park’s natural environment.

To help visitors discover the park and its offerings, Big Human introduced a host of new pages, including Park Details, Neighborhood, and Live (a page highlighting nearby Two Trees apartments). We also designed a dedicated landing page for Domino Square, a recent addition that hosts the park’s ice skating rink and public events. The new Events page features a custom-built calendar and easy-access components for ticket purchases and newsletter sign-ups — effortless ways visitors can discover and stay up-to-date with the latest at Domino Park.

One of the website’s highlights is a Google-powered interactive map, offering an aerial view of the park’s five-acre expanse. The map is a dynamic guide with color-coded iconography highlighting and linking to Domino Park’s key amenities; it also has filters that let users explore the offerings (Food + Drink, Shopping, Entertainment, and more) they’re most interested in.

For a more engaging user experience, we integrated subtle animations and micro-interactions, most noticeably in the hover states and on the FAQ page. Since visiting an outdoor space is weather-dependent, the homepage displays the daily weather forecast alongside the park’s hours of operation. This gives more insight into Domino Park’s environment, an understated but practical UX element that allows users to thoughtfully plan their visit.

Big Human engineers focused on both frontend and backend development, developing the site’s UI and content management system. By building with the Sanity CMS platform, we gave the Domino Park team greater flexibility in creating new pages and editing existing ones; the CMS also allows Domino Park to create new events and turn specific components on or off, depending on its needs. For Domino Square’s ice skating rink ticket sales, we leveraged a third-party ticketing embed for a simple check-out experience with limited development effort.