ST. CLOUD — A Milwaukee-based real estate company announced this week it has acquired the former Electrolux facility in St. Cloud for an undisclosed price.

Phoenix Investors, a private company that says it specializes in buying and reusing former manufacturing facilities, purchased the 922,000-square-foot building from Electrolux Group, which used the facility until 2019 when it moved its freezer production to South Carolina. It has been vacant since.

The building, constructed in 1950, has both office and warehouse space, as well as nearly 1,000 parking spaces — all on about 50 acres, according to a news release issued by the investment group.

The Electrolux site was on the footprint of the original Pan Motor Co. that made automobiles a century ago. The site is surrounded by neighborhoods on the west side of the city, including houses built for Pan Motor employees, as well as other businesses.

St. Cloud Mayor Dave Kleis said Tuesday he's excited about the opportunity to put the vacant building back in use, which will result in a greater tax base and employment options in the city.

"It's a great opportunity for a repurpose and a reuse," he said.

Phoenix Investors' affiliate companies hold equity interests in a portfolio of industrial properties spanning 29 states, including Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois and Michigan.

Frank Crivello, founder of Phoenix Investors, said he's already seen interest from manufacturing companies about leasing the space.

"I would expect a combination of warehouse distribution and manufacturing," he said, noting a majority of the space the company has leased in the past three months has been for manufacturing related to solar and battery technologies, electric vehicles and defense contracting. "We're excited to be a part of the St. Cloud community and the community should look forward to a number of companies being there in the months to come and seeing revival."