The money is in the bank.

According to a press release issued by the City of Mesquite on Thursday, the Desert Falls International Sports Resort LLC has paid its 5% down payment for the large tract of land in West Mesquite that it is purchasing from the city.

The purchase includes 864 acres near the city's regional park near Hardy Way and Falcon Ridge Parkway.

Bryan Dangerfield, Mesquite's Director of Economic Development, confirmed that the city received a check in the amount of $316,002.50 on Aug. 25, one day before the deadline.

The Desert Falls organization has proposed a mammoth sports complex targeting amateur athletics, including softball, baseball, soccer, tennis, and volleyball.

According to the press release, Desert Falls founder and manager Josh Olmstead has indicated the company will now "turn its attention to completing the financing of the land purchase and other requirements of the development agreement and construction of the first phase, including 20 ball diamonds, 24 soccer fields, tennis and sand volleyball courts and other amenities."

The press release estimates the cost of the first phase at $100 million.

According to the joint development agreement, the first phase must be completed by Nov. 26, 2011, including the fiber optic line.

Future phases include a proposed 15,000 seat baseball/softball stadium; a 10,000 seat indoor stadium for football, basketball, and volleyball; a track and field complex; indoor facilities for swimming, diving, basketball, volleyball, and racquetball; a golf course; a facility for sports medicine, rehabilitation, and nutrition; 100 acres of commercial development to include shopping and hotels; and 495 single family and multi family residential units.

The city's press release stated that the project would be built-out within five years.

The city agreed to sell the property at a discounted price back in February of this year, accepting the offer of $6.6 million for land valued at between $23 million and $46 million.

The city was forced to do a re-vote after mayor Susan Holecheck refused to allow public comment on the city's decision to accept the offer from the Utah company.

Originally, the Joint Development Agreement between the developers and the city included 925 acres.

However, after a site survey was completed in June, the amount of land included in the deal was reduced to 864 acres.

The price was also reduced from $6,625,000 to $6,320,050, which pencils out to $7,315 per acre.

In addition to the price of the land, the agreement also calls for Desert Falls to pay another $1.5 million for half the construction costs of extending Hardy Way into the property, as well as putting another $3,335,000 into an escrow account for a new fiber optic line to be brought into Mesquite.

The city made the fiber optic line a requirement in the original deal, despite the fact that Mesquite already has an extensive fiber optic network through the local phone company.

Thursday's press release stated that "Desert Falls could begin ground preparations around the first of the year."

However, Dangerfield has previously said that the company could not begin any work on the land until the full purchase price has been paid.

That means Desert Falls would have to come up with another $10,839,047.50 before construction could begin.

That's just a fraction of the overall cost of the project, which has previously been estimated at nearly $500 million.

Questions still remain over where that half-billion will come from.

Holecheck has previously stated that she had personally seen the financing plan, and was comfortable with it, although she did not keep a copy of the plan.

There is no record of the financing plans included in city documents.

The only public documentation of the project’s financing plan is a series of riders included in the joint development agreement which indicates the group intends to seek some government-backed money.

That includes industrial revenue bonds to be issued through the Nevada Department of Business and Industry, “Star” bonds to be issued with help from the City of Mesquite, and Special Improvement District bonds, also to be created with assistance from the city.

Once the city receives the full payment of the land, fiber optic line, and road funding, the city will transfer the title.

Once that occurs, the next step will be for Desert Falls to a submit design standards handbook, followed by an agency review and an appearance before the City Council.

According to the press release, the project has been on the fast track since the site selection process began last December, when the developers were allegedly poised to purchase land in Hurricane for the project.

UPDATED: To see a full PDF version of the Joint Development Agreement between Desert Falls and the City of Mesquite, go to http://records.mesquitenv.gov/sirepub/cache/8/vbxbi1jtey4hlr55k1ug2345/7612508312009083535595.PDF