hoping to catch a glimpse of the couple before they returned to the for their departure from Halifax. The hotel was sold by Canadian National Hotels in 1981 when that chain divested all of its properties in the early 1980s. It was purchased by Revenue Hotels and in 1989 Hilton Hotels took over management and the name changed to the Halifax Hilton. Hilton invested $15 million to upgrade the hotel. Revenue Hotels sought to turn the hotel into a casino, but the bid failed. They closed the hotel in 1993, and the building was used as a temporary dormitory by Saint Mary's University for several years after a student residence underwent emergency repairs due to an unstable wall. A company was hired to demolish the hotel. It was saved when the property was purchased, in April 1996, by New Castle Hotels and Resorts of Connecticut. The hotel was reportedly only a week away from demolition. An additional $4 million was put into renovating the hotel and it reopened on 1 December 1996 as The Westin Nova Scotian. The hotel is the venue for the annual Halifax International Security Forum held in November. Design The hotel today is a historic 15-storey structure overlooking Peace and Friendship Park (Formerly Cornwallis Park) to the west and the seaport to the east. Cruise ships still regularly dock alongside the hotel and the adjacent railway station still offers regular service to Montreal via the Ocean. There are now 310 rooms in the hotel, including 10 suites. The Crown Suite, on the 11th floor, offers sweeping views of Halifax Harbour and is where Elizabeth II stayed in the past. The hotel is home to of space for meetings, conferences, and weddings. A restaurant, Elements on Hollis, opened in 2011 and showcases Nova Scotian cuisine. Roy's Lounge is a contemporary cocktail lounge named after bartender Roy Clorey, who began bartending at the Hotel Nova Scotian in 1963. The hotel also houses a fitness centre, an indoor saltwater pool, and a business centre. The area surrounding the hotel has become thoroughly modernized in recent decades. The old coal-fired power station across the street was recently renovated to serve as the corporate headquarters of Nova Scotia Power, and is the first LEED platinum-certified building in Atlantic Canada. The seaport district is now home to the Halifax Farmers' Market, the Canadian Museum of Immigration, and NSCAD University – in addition