It was pretty dingy before, but passed by today and it seems that Marriott are doing a fairly thorough refurb.
I often passed and wondered how they were still competing. 10yrs ago they had very little competition in the direct neighbourhood but that has all changed and most companies (incluidng my own) have deals with the chains that have since moved in. It was probably a join or die decision as I cannot see how a standalone would prosper in this area