The long-shuttered Magic Cleaners Building on the NW corner of NW 4th & Lee has been purchased by an LLC headed by local developer Mark Ruffin.

Preliminary plans call for renovation into offices.

The 15,925 square foot building was constructed in 1933. The property sits on .4 acres and sold for $425,000.

It is directly east of the old So Fine club that sold just a few months ago and is in the process of being converted to The Flea (http://www.okctalk.com/showwiki.php?title=The+Flea) bar and restaurant. Directly to the north will be the new headquarters for Bob Moore (http://www.okctalk.com/showwiki.php?title=Bob+Moore+HQ), which is currently under construction.



http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/magic.jpg


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/magic1.jpg

Any updates on this?

Yes, it's for lease as office space.

They did some interior demo and cleanup but that's it so far.

May be looking for a tenant before they do much else.

Here are some photos of the inside (1st photo is of 1st floor, 2nd photo 2nd floor).

They are still trying to lease as office space.



http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/705nw4a.jpg


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/705nw4b.jpg

When I read next to the Flea, I thought of this building.
Anyone know what this is going to be? I saw some people looking at it the other day on my way home.13734

^

That's been for lease for at least two years.

Hope they find some takers.

Me too, it is a cool spot.
I remember hearing rumors (over a year ago) that a brewery was going in there but now I think it was people mistaking that building for the Sunshine Cleaners building where Stonecloud Brewing should (hopefully) be opening soon.

Clyde Riggs Construction is working on this building now. The man I talked to from the construction company said they are working on the floors (lots of damage from the cleaning materials over the years he said) and will replace the roof and exterior windows. He did not know if there was anyone lined up to lease the space(s). Not much has changed on the outside at this point.

Clyde Riggs Construction is working on this building now. The man I talked to from the construction company said they are working on the floors (lots of damage from the cleaning materials over the years he said) and will replace the roof and exterior windows. He did not know if there was anyone lined up to lease the space(s). Not much has changed on the outside at this point.

Thanks for the info.

The listing still shows the entire building for lease. They have been trying to fing a tenant since buying it a couple of years ago and I suspect they realized they have to clean it up and get it in decent shape first.

It's a cool building and an excellent location.

This building is getting new windows; they are still trying to lease it:

http://okctalk.com/images/pete/4th052320a.jpg

That one square on the side of the building...different brick and windows...any idea the reason?

^

There was probably a big overhead door there at one time, before the current owners bought the building from the cleaners.

I like the inside, it looks cool and got potential to make into a cool space

It's interesting what a visual difference new windows always makes.

^

There was probably a big overhead door there at one time, before the current owners bought the building from the cleaners.

Maybe that disjointed Maywood Phase 2 motif is catching on. One can dream!

That one square on the side of the building...different brick and windows...any idea the reason?

Just guessing here, but from looking at the brick work of that one area, and then the inside view of that area, it appears to me to be a remnant of a much older building that was added onto in later years. Above those curved windows is a design in the brick, and then around the door itself are some design features as well as the windows themselves. No reason that closing in a big overheard door would result in such design work when the rest of the building was more midcentury. So, I think that is a much older portion of a smaller building that was built around.

^^^ I like that...like a CSI for old buildings :)

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/magic080920a.jpg

This place looks really cool in person. Hope they can find a tenant (or tenants). These "west downtown" stretches of NW 4/5/6 have a lot of potential if the original remaining buildings can be intermixed with new stuff.

This building is such a Frankenstein of different window shapes and placement, differing types of brick, a weird overhead door on the 2nd level, and random location of exterior doors.

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/magic093020a.jpg

I saw the thread bump yesterday and happened to be speaking to the owner regarding other business, which prompted me to ask him about the different brick and designs on the side. He explained that the curved window, brown brick portion is the original building; the orange brick section that goes up to the second level from the front of the original building is the first addition; the one story addition on the rear and the more red colored brick filling door and window spaces throughout the the original and first addition is the second addition; the front orange brick section with the mid-century style entry is third addition, which was probably done after WWII.

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/magiccleaners111520a.jpg

They did a really nice job on this renovation.

HTTP://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/magic021321a.jpeg

Drove by this building yesterday. Looks great in person. Mark Ruffin and his team put their years of experience to good use.

Mark a good man.

+1. A good man. OKC is a better place for his time here.

For those who didn't know, developer Mark Ruffin recently passed away due to Covid-19.

Only 58 years old.

I didn't know Mark well but we chatted on the phone a couple of times and he was just a sincere, incredibly nice guy. Did some really nice projects around OKC.

Mark was one of the good guys.

Didn’t want to say anything yesterday because I wasn’t sure how public his death was yet, but yes, one of the good guys. I got to know Mark fairly well over the past 25 years or so, first during my involvement with Automobile Alley, later with another company when my office was in the Hudson-Essex Building, and since then mostly when I was lucky enough to run into him somewhere like on one of his regular visits to Brown’s Bakery.

Mark was an early visionary regarding the redevelopment of downtown, even pre-MAPS, investing in cool, quirky urban projects of the type which really hadn’t been seen yet in OKC at that point.

Also notably heavily involved in the development of the under-construction Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine.

Incredibly wise and welcoming, good-natured, willing to share his time and information. This is just a huge, huge loss for our city. Big.

Unfortunate news. Was he still involved with Preftakes?

this goes to show how many real people are involved -- who most will never know their name -- to make a city a great place.

^ +1 catch

Unfortunate news. Was he still involved with Preftakes?

this goes to show how many real people are involved -- who most will never know their name -- to make a city a great place.

I believe Mr. Ruffin and Mr. Preftakes always had a strong working relationship. Precor Ruffin is still a solid commercial real estate business.

I'm not claiming to be close friends of Mark Ruffin, but he was always good to me. Dude just acted like someone who lived by the Golden Rule.

A law firm is taking both floors in this building.

DeWitt, Paruolo and Meek will be moving from Edmond.

Fantastic!

Buying or leasing?

Looks like a lease; still owned by Precor Ruffin.

I don't think this building has been occupied for around a decade.

Law firm continues to do their build out:

HTTP://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/magiccleaners101421a.jpg

17378

seems done