The county is going green to save some green.

Last month, Cherokee County Council awarded D. Burns Contractors the contract to demolish and grind the foundation of the former Milliken textile plant.

Ordinarily, the concrete would have been transported to the county landfill. However, the county has used the concrete to build a road at the landfill and as the foundation for a resurfacing project for Drucilla Drive.

The remaining concrete will be stored at the old mill site for future use on road projects.

The recycling project also is resulting in savings for the county. According to the road paving agreement, Sloan Construction would charge the county $15 a ton for gravel. But the county is saving $8 a ton by using the recycled foundation gravel in the road paving project.

"We are doing it as a recycling project," said Cherokee County Assistant Administrator Holland Belue, who suggested the recycling angle to council. "Essentially the county is getting the demolition work done for free since we are getting the gravel for half price."

To date, the contractor has demolished and ground about 4,800 tons of foundation debris. Belue said the demolition work is expected to be completed by the end of the month.

Belue said once the foundation demolition is complete, the site will be ready for future development.

That future development is expected to be a new government center, but the county has given no timetable on when the project will begin.

Last summer, Milliken agreed to sell the former manufacturing site to the county for $435,000.

The county closed on the 16.8-acre site in April.

The county plans to fund its new government center partly with an estimated $3.5 million in tax revenue it has set aside in its capital building fund. The remaining cost will be financed with bonds.

The county also will recoup up to $100,000 of the cost by selling three acres of the property to the City of Gaffney for use as a park.