Oakleaf Group acquires Central Inn at Cookstown as part of major £3m investment in Mid Ulster

By Stanley Campbell
Published 9th May 2024, 11:21 BST
Updated 9th May 2024, 12:52 BST
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now
The Magherafelt-based Oakleaf Group has acquired The Central Inn in Cookstown as part of an overall investment of £3m in the Mid-Ulster area over a two-year period.

Established in 1969, the three-storey Central has been a mainstay in the heart of Cookstown for more than half a century and work is already under way to transform the venue into ‘The 40 Thieves’, an Irish American style pub that promises to give patrons ‘a taste of the 19th century Big Apple’.

In addition, Oakleaf will be creating 23 new serviced apartments above and to the rear of the Main Street bar, in a ‘town centre living’ initiative to help revitalise William Street and encourage people to live there.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The news comes on the back of the acquisition and refurbishment of the neighbouring building, formerly Faulkner’s Chemist, which is now occupied by Argento Jewellers and includes three new apartments.

Neil McCloy, Site Manager, and Nicolette Campbell, Quantity Surveyor, of Oakleaf Contracts pictured overseeing a major refurbishment at The Central Bar which will see the venue transformed into ‘The 40 Thieves’, an Irish-American style pub that promises to give patrons ‘a taste of the 19th century Big Apple’. Credit: Darren KiddNeil McCloy, Site Manager, and Nicolette Campbell, Quantity Surveyor, of Oakleaf Contracts pictured overseeing a major refurbishment at The Central Bar which will see the venue transformed into ‘The 40 Thieves’, an Irish-American style pub that promises to give patrons ‘a taste of the 19th century Big Apple’. Credit: Darren Kidd
Neil McCloy, Site Manager, and Nicolette Campbell, Quantity Surveyor, of Oakleaf Contracts pictured overseeing a major refurbishment at The Central Bar which will see the venue transformed into ‘The 40 Thieves’, an Irish-American style pub that promises to give patrons ‘a taste of the 19th century Big Apple’. Credit: Darren Kidd

The 40 Thieves is due to open its doors this July, with the first phase of apartments expected to be released to the public in June.

Read More
Dale Farm's Dunman cheese factory at Cookstown to receive record £70m upgrade

The opening of The 40 Thieves and its associated apartments increases Oakleaf’s expanding portfolio in the market town of Cookstown, once the mecca of the Mid-Ulster social scene.

The company already owns the historic Clubland nightclub and neighbouring Cherry Tree bar in Molesworth Street, as well as the popular TIME Bar & Venue on James Street – for which plans are also in place for a major summer refurbishment.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad
TIME Bar & Venue in Cookstown is to undergo a major summer refurbishment as part of an overall investment by the Magherafelt-based Oakleaf Group of £3m in the Mid-Ulster region over a two-year period. Whilst the associated Jailbird Garden Bar will remain open and untouched during the construction works, TIME’s ground floor and first floor venue will be closed from Sunday June 30 and transformed into a traditional Irish sports pub, with new state-of-the-art multi-purpose first and second floor venue, both to be launched in the autumn. Reviewing the plans are (l-r) Paula McGeagh Front of House Manager, TIME Bar & Venue, Nicky Huddleston, Director of 1 OAK Leisure, and Nicolette Campbell, Quantity Surveyor, Oakleaf Contracts. Credit: PressEyeTIME Bar & Venue in Cookstown is to undergo a major summer refurbishment as part of an overall investment by the Magherafelt-based Oakleaf Group of £3m in the Mid-Ulster region over a two-year period. Whilst the associated Jailbird Garden Bar will remain open and untouched during the construction works, TIME’s ground floor and first floor venue will be closed from Sunday June 30 and transformed into a traditional Irish sports pub, with new state-of-the-art multi-purpose first and second floor venue, both to be launched in the autumn. Reviewing the plans are (l-r) Paula McGeagh Front of House Manager, TIME Bar & Venue, Nicky Huddleston, Director of 1 OAK Leisure, and Nicolette Campbell, Quantity Surveyor, Oakleaf Contracts. Credit: PressEye
TIME Bar & Venue in Cookstown is to undergo a major summer refurbishment as part of an overall investment by the Magherafelt-based Oakleaf Group of £3m in the Mid-Ulster region over a two-year period. Whilst the associated Jailbird Garden Bar will remain open and untouched during the construction works, TIME’s ground floor and first floor venue will be closed from Sunday June 30 and transformed into a traditional Irish sports pub, with new state-of-the-art multi-purpose first and second floor venue, both to be launched in the autumn. Reviewing the plans are (l-r) Paula McGeagh Front of House Manager, TIME Bar & Venue, Nicky Huddleston, Director of 1 OAK Leisure, and Nicolette Campbell, Quantity Surveyor, Oakleaf Contracts. Credit: PressEye

Whilst the associated Jailbird Garden Bar will remain open and untouched during the construction works, TIME’s ground floor and first floor venue will be closed from Sunday June 30 and transformed into a traditional Irish sports pub, with new state-of-the-art multi-purpose first and second floor venue, both to be launched in the autumn.

The Oakleaf investment doesn’t stop in Cookstown, with work now completed on The Black Sheep bar in the nearby village of The Loup, which was purchased by the Group in June last year.

An on-going 12-month refurbishment has created a revitalised community hub for the village, with a new restaurant in the venue to be opened in the coming months.