than 9,200 acres. Despite some opposition from locals, the Mohave County Board of Supervisors granted preliminary approval in late 2005 for four of the communities. The fifth, known as the Retreat at Temple Bar, was rejected. It was to include 19,000 homes on approximately 3,000 acres. The National Park Service opposed the project, which would have been located within the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. In addition, residents in Boulder City, Nevada were concerned about the amount of traffic that would travel through their city, located in between the proposed Arizona communities and Las Vegas. In 2006, Rhodes prevailed in a bidding war to purchase approximately 57,000 acres of New Mexico land from Westland Development Company. The property, mostly vacant, was located west of Albuquerque. Rhodes was to purchase the land through one of his companies, Sedora Holdings. However, another company ultimately outbid Sedora. At the end of 2006, Rhodes paid $58.6 million to purchase more than 1,000 acres of state trust land in Apache Junction, Arizona, where he planned another residential community, separate from the other five. Rhodes also had the rights to master-plan another 6,700 acres of surrounding land in Apache Junction. The Golden Valley project later became known as Pravada. Construction was temporarily suspended in April 2007, because of approval issues concerning land use, zoning, and water availability. Only four model homes had been built, and construction was expected to resume once approval had been granted. Some local residents welcomed the Pravada project, while others were against it and the growth it would bring to the area. Residents and government officials were also concerned about the large amount of water that Pravada would require. Rhodes sought approval to operate his water company in Mojave County for his residential projects. The Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) debated for years whether to approve Rhodes, as there were concerns about his past legal problems, as well as a lack of water in the area. Rhodes testified to the commission in April 2007 that he was usually the victim in past legal disputes, blaming employees or immoral lawyers and business partners. The ACC considered Rhodes' plans a top priority and one of the most important cases in its history. The Arizona Department of Water Resources conducted a preliminary study which indicated that there was not enough water in the area to support the various residential projects. Rhodes and the Mohave County manager