Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1500345
16 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 31 MAY 2023 NEWS ACROSS 1) ___ ballerina 6) Dullsville 10) "Aw, heck!" 14) Thesaurus name 15) Casino city 16) iPad symbol 17) Ham it up 18) Horse chow 19) Sports car roof option 20) "The Last King of Scotland" star 23) Bluesman Redding 24) Rude dude 25) Febreze target 28) Digestion-related 32) Time to call, in ads 35) "Klepto-" follower 37) Fit for duty 38) Mauna ___ 39) Lightning producer 43) PBS funder 44) Private home? 45) Bum a bit 46) Tax form ID 47) Retreat for Gandhi 50) Clarinetist's need 51) "Spring ahead" hrs. 53) Diggs of "Private Practice" 55) Part of Parliament 62) "Help Me" singer Mitchell 63) Jazz combo, often 64) Scheming group 65) Chowderhead 66) Till bills 67) Sachet's quality 68) Eyelid woe 69) Helper (Abbr.) 70) Shotgun target DOWN 1) "Mis-" or "dis-" (Abbr.) 2) Cowboys quarterback Tony 3) Composer Stravinsky 4) Rapid, as a rise to fame 5) Blast from the past? 6) Window-shop 7) Actress Remini 8) Dead set against 9) Fallon or Kimmel 10) Bears Hall of Famer Mike 11) Had no accomplices 12) King Hussein's widow 13) Major econ. index 21) Bill add-on 22) Way in 25) Black cat and broken mirror, to some 26) Low-lying lands 27) True love 29) Expectant dad, may- be 30) TV schedule abbr. 31) Feeling bad 33) Smithy's workplace 34) Toned down 36) Box score stats 40) Dorm VIPs 41) Language suffix 42) Evidence of a skid 48) For no profit 49) Little Red Book author 52) Hotel offering 54) Some rec centers 55) Show derision 56) James who was por- trayed by Beyonce 57) Tram loads 58) 1959 Cadillac features 59) Bassoon's kin 60) Point a finger at 61) Blind part 62) Law school grads, briefly F Solution to last week's crossword The answers to today's crossword will be published in next week's Midweek edition Weather Rather cloudy Visibility Good Wind East Southeast force 3 to 4 becoming East Northeast force 5. To the South of Malta: East Southeast force 4 to 5 becoming East force 5 to 6 TOMORROW Crossword WEATHER WINDY WITH ISOLATED SHOWERS 21 0 / 16 0 TODAY MAINLY CLOUDY 21 0 / 16 0 FEELS LIKE 21 0 FEELS LIKE 21 0 KURT SANSONE A restoration grant for owners of residences located in town centres had to be shut down within minutes of opening after applicants flooded the scheme. The Planning Authority said on Tuesday that the Irrestawra Darek grant scheme received an overwhelming response from applicants "within minutes of its launch". "As a result, the category for private owners of residences located within an Urban Con- servation Area (UCA) has been closed due to high demand and over-subscription. This cate- gory was allotted €4 million of the scheme's €5 million budget. The evaluation process will be commencing shortly," the PA said in a statement. Many interested applicants were left high and dry as their architects tried in vain to access the online system to file the rel- evant documents. "The system jammed with- in the first 15 minutes of the scheme opening," one prospec- tive applicant who failed to make it told MaltaToday. The scheme is popular because the authority will reimburse all eligible restoration works car- ried out for residences in urban conservation areas subject to a limit of €11,000. This is the fourth time that such a scheme has been issued. It aims to regenerate UCAs while promoting investment in the restoration, conservation, and maintenance of Malta's built heritage. The PA said that the scheme is scheduled to open again with a budget of €1 million for Grade 1 and Grade 2 residen- tial properties. This category will open on Tuesday, 6 June, the PA said. Planning Minister Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi later said in parliament that within minutes of the scheme opening at noon, more than 350 applications were submitted. He was replying to a parlia- mentary question by National- ist Party MP Albert Buttigieg, who reported receiving several complaints from applicants who could not access the system. Zrinzo Azzopardi said the scheme is capped at €4 million and applicants will benefit on a first come, first served basis. House restoration grant closed within minutes after flood of applications Owners of properties in UCAs could have benefitted from grants that finance up to €11,000 in restoration works