Cornerstone apartments are located on the second floor of the
historic Cornerstone Building in the heart of Fernwood, originally
constructed in 1910 and 1911 by the Parfitt Brothers. The ground floor
of the building is currently home to:
Collective Works, a collectively-run art gallery featuring the work of local artists;
Stage Small Plates and Wine Bar, an award winning restaurant that ranked in Enroute's top 10 in Canada for 2008; and,
the Cornerstone Cafe, a social enterprise that is owned and operated
by Fernwood NRG. Profits generated from the Cornerstone Cafe are
directed back into neighbourhood programs and services.
In August 2005, Fernwood NRG purchased the derelict building.
Construction began in April 2006, with the entire Fernwood community
coming out to swing a hammer or wield a paintbrush. After 15 months of
hard work from staff and volunteers ranging from ages 4 to 88, the
Cornerstone building held its grand opening on October 30th, 2006.
Since then, the building has been recognized by the Canada Mortgage and
Housing Corporation, which awarded a CMHC Housing Award to Fernwood NRG
for the building in 2008.
