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The onetime home of two significant Eastside industrial businesses has been sold to an owner committed to preserving the building’s historic character.

Portland-based ScanlanKemperBard (SKB) and William Harris Investors Inc. of Chicago have purchased the Iron Fireman building at 4784 S.E. 17th Ave. for $5.3 million, or $46 per square foot. They plan to convert the vacant industrial warehouse into 鈥渃reative space for local light-industrial, light-manufacturing and maker businesses,鈥� according to a news release.

The buyers declined to name the seller, but the city assessor’s website lists Steven Michaelis of Cleveland as owner.

The 115,000-square-foot building was constructed in 1924 as the factory of the Iron Fireman Co., a manufacturer of residential heating units. Later it housed Product Engineering Co. (PECO), whose name remains on the side of the building.

SKB and William Harris Investors plan to invest $10 million in building improvements over the next 12 to 18 months. The warehouse contains a number of old-time features owners wish to retain, including exposed brick, old-growth timber beams, handcrafted wood paneling and stained-glass windows.

The property is located along TriMet‘s new MAX orange line, near the stop at Southeast 17th Avenue and Holgate Boulevard.