Seven years and $50 million later, mission accomplished. In July, the hotel unveiled its new 4,300-square-foot penthouse suite with nine rooms, ceiling heights up to 25 feet, and breathtaking city views. Marino designed the sumptuously appointed interiors, which feature walls dressed in book-matched Chinese onyx; closet doors wrapped in buttery leather; and a 4-foot-tall, fiber-optic chandelier made of glass chards. Pei’s contribution includes four glass terraces that float 700 feet above the street.

At $30,000 a night, the suite is reportedly the world’s most expensive. A stay includes personal butlers, in-room spa treatments, and unlimited use of the hotel’s Rolls Royce and Maybach automobiles. The room has been booked on only four occasions since its opening, but such limited usage appears to be the point. “This type of suite shouldn’t be rented on a very frequent basis because it’s so precious,” says Leslie Lefkowitz, the hotel’s public relations director. “We want to keep the exclusivity and maintain the pristine condition of the room.”