It was called the Empty State Building at one point because there were no jobs being created after it was done. And it turns out that the public going to that observation deck paid the rent.

Its architectural importance far transcends the issue of height alone. The design, which was distinctively modern which has remained crisp and iconic on the skyline.

An iconic building doesn’t derive its celebrity from its designers. It’s all about the building, the work that must speak for itself.

I get to watch the world economy by who visits the building. I like overseeing New York. I feel like I can see all of New York. I feel emboldened and it starts when I walk through the lobby... The minute I walk through that building I feel like I arrived.

The number of visitors who go to that building to have the experience of being in New York and seeing New York and being of New York is really a tremendous testament to what the original designers and craftsman did.