WHILE WE’RE AT IT The Award

WHY THIS SHABBY EYESORE ON PRIME REAL estate at Mockingbird Lane and Central Expressway hasn’t gone to a higher plane by way of the wrecking ball is a question only the cosmic forces of the universe can answer. But true enlightenment would be figuring out this hotel’s real reason for being. In its past life, the Hiltop Inn was a Hilton and a hotspot. Then interim owners elegantly pasted that giant “P” over the sign’s “N” and nothing’s ever been the same. Bought by devotees of Ma-harishi Mahesh Yogi, the guru that brought the Beatles transcendental meditation in the “60s, the inn now lodges ameditation school, an ayurvedic medicine clinic, a dilapidated vegetarian restaurant, and-oh yeah-S39-a-night guest rooms for unsuspecting SMU parents. No more penthouse jazz club or Trader Vic’s (even though the Easter Island-esque statue still loiters outside), and the outdoor pool looks toxic. But please, no smoking and no negative thoughts once you step inside. This place may look like a dingy dive, but it’s actually a spiritually-centered, health-conscious high-rise-or couldn’t you tell?