Sacramento County supervisors, on a 4-1 vote Wednesday, gave new life to a controversial plan to build a four-year college and housing on more than 2,000 acres of undeveloped land east of Rancho Cordova.

A Utah home builder and the Sacramento Municipal Utility District have struck a deal to build 1,487 solar-powered homes in Rancho Cordova and Rancho Murieta by 2012, the parties announced Friday.

While most cities and counties in the Sacramento region struggle to attract more affordable housing developments, Rancho Cordova's greatest need in the next five years is for high-end homes.