The list of Mepa applications that appeared in yesterday’s issue of this paper’s sister daily included a rather strange item.

It said that Mgr Carmelo Zammit (the dean of the Cathedral Chapter) has applied for the “excavation of (a) grave within the ‘extents’ (?) of the Mdina Cathedral”.

No other information was available on the Mepa website, not even a picture of the site notice, except the information that the architect who submitted the application is David Mifsud Parker.

Yesterday’s list of Mepa applications also included one to demolish a building in Mellieha’s main street and construct a three-star hotel plus restaurant and three shops.

The list also informed that Island Hotels (on behalf of The Heavenly Collection) has now submitted a full application for the demolition of the Hal Ferh Complex at Golden Bay and to construct a tourist complex as per development brief after clearing the site, plus a three-level car park and amendments to the current road network.

The list of applications also includes an application for the conversion and restoration of a historical townhouse and to convert it into a 40-room guesthouse. The house is on Triq Marsamxett in Valletta and also includes the water polo pitch down at sea level, which will be turned into a lido.

The Police Force has meanwhile been granted permission to install a passenger lift and to create a holding cell at Palazzo Verdellin, the new police station off Palace Square in Valletta.

All alterations, it was pointed out, will be in that part of the building that was constructed in the 1980s and not in the original fabric of the palazzo.