The City: Extra Grand Central

It rises like a giant tombstone above the skyline of Manhattan's East Side. It has been described as ugly—and undoubtedly it is not beautiful. But it claims to be the world's largest commercial office building.* And last week it opened with scissors snipping away at ribbons and oratory almost as windy as the wintry gusts that swirled around its 59 stories.

The Pan American Building is not as high as the Empire State, nor does it sprawl over as much acreage as the Pentagon, nor is it as monumental as the Roman Baths of Caracalla, after which Penn Station was...