The Warren County Commission last week completed the purchase of approximately 6 acres of land south of Warrenton that will serve as the site for a four-county recycling center. The central facility will provide free recycling services for residents of Franklin, Warren, Lincoln and Montgomery counties. Warren County is paying $275,000 for the property located at 24448 South Highway 47, about three miles south of Warrenton at the Quarry Road intersection. The property, owned by Larry Rogers, is the former site of Larry's Auto and Storage. The county will lease the land to the East Central Missouri Solid Waste District as part of a collaborative effort to increase recycling efforts in the area. The property was appraised at $288,000 by B&B Appraisals during a site review on Jan. 5. A site evaluation conducted by SCI Engineering, Inc., also was conducted at the property and no issues were discovered, commissioners said. The county closed on the property Thursday, April 1.  The county had to purchase the land because the solid waste district is prohibited from purchasing property per state statute. BRPC Executive Director Steve Etcher said it's his hope that at some point the county can sell the land once a level of profitability is reached. "It's a win-win for the county," Northern District Commissioner Dan Hampson said. Warren County will be reimbursed the cost of the land under a 10-year facility use agreement. The county used money from its capital improvement fund to buy the land. A $275,000 grant from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources will cover operating and equipment expenses for the new recycling center. A grand opening is scheduled for Earth Day on Thursday, April 22. The facility will be open to the public Wednesdays through Fridays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to noon. "We have a lot to do in three weeks, but we will make it," Etcher said. The recycling center will employ only one person at this time. Chris Walch has been named facility manager. He is employed by BRPC.   Some of the items that will be accepted include paper, glass, plastics, aluminum, metals and electronics and batteries. Services may be expanded in the future and special collections will be provided as well, such as a tire roundup to be held for Warren County residents in September, according to Etcher. Warren County was selected as the location due to it being centrally located in the four-county region. The idea behind the recycling center is to promote an environmentally friendly message and to provide a service that has yet to be offered in the region. Etcher said there had been a growing number of requests from the public for a facility of this kind. The only other recycling center in the area is operated by the city of Washington. Since the county will be reimbursed the cost of the land, Southern District Commissioner Hubie Kluesner said "the county should not be out of any money whatsoever." "It should be convenient for people to get to," Presiding Commissioner Arden Engelage said. "We feel this is a good project to put money into. You're taking a lot of tonnage out of the landfills."