What is left is an empty 650,000 square foot factory owned by Dan River Inc., a company that once employed more than a third of Danville residents. The building is known locally as the White Mill, but it may end up being a white elephant.
There was short-lived elation in 2009 when someone bought the factory and promised to invest $400 million and bring 400 high-paying tech jobs to the city -- neither of which came to pass.
So the city council voted last April to appropriate $3 million so the Danville Industrial Development Authority can purchase the building and surrounding properties.
The search for a new tenant, however, is ongoing.