image description — A painting by Bruce Shickmanter.

Art on Main Gallery New Exhibit: Oil Water Clay

12:26PM / Friday, August 18, 2023Print Story | Email Story

Works by Michael Coyne.

WEST STOCKBRIDGE, Mass. — A new exhibit by artists Mike Coyne and Bruce Shickmanter will open at the Art on Main Gallery on Aug. 24.

There will be an opening reception on Aug. 26 from 2 to 4 pm.

Gallery hours are Thursday through Sunday from 11 am to 4 pm.

The gallery is located on 38 Main Street.

Michael Coyne is a retired emergency physician whose artistic interests include metalwork, ceramics, photography, and painting. Michael’s art is inspired by; music, travel, the outdoors, and his love of colors. His works have been displayed in a variety of galleries and shows within New England and the Southwest.

In his paintings, Bruce Shickmanter tries to use pleasing shapes along with light and color to convey a sense of magic, mystery and movement. He uses the texture and matte finish of gouache to create a contrast with the transparent and ephemeral qualities of watercolors. He has begun to use acrylic as an extra complement to his work. The scenes he paints are often places he has come across while hiking or biking or are inspired by a photo that stimulates his creativity.

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First Eagle Mill Units in Lee to Open in Springtime

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
05:02AM / Tuesday, February 03, 2026

Eagle Mills developer Jeffrey Cohen updates the Lee Chamber of Commerce as the project's phases, and the amount of heavy lifting to get it to this point.

LEE, Mass. — More than 50 affordable units are expected to come online at the Eagle Mill this spring.

This is the first of several planned development phases at the former paper mill that dates back to the early 1800s, totaling more than 200 units. The Lee Chamber of Commerce hosted an information session on the project during its Business Breakfast last Wednesday.

"We are here because we have a really big project that's happened for a very long time here in Lee, that, for myself, has provided a real sense of hope, and has has really defined this community as one of the few in the Berkshires that's really looking forward, as opposed to just being sort of stuck in the past," Chamber member Erik Williams said.

The estimated $60 million development broke ground in 2021 after nearly a decade of planning and permitting. Hundreds of workers once filed into the 8-acre complex, producing up to 165 tons of paper a week. The last mill on the property closed in 2008.

Hearthway is accepting applications for 56 affordable apartments called "The Lofts at Eagle Mill" with expected occupancy in May. The housing nonprofit was also approved for 45 additional units of new construction on the site.

Jeffrey Cohen of Eagle Mill Redevelopment LLC said the project dates back to 2012, when a purchase contract was signed for the West Center Street property. The developers didn't have to close on the property until renovation plans were approved in 2017, and the mill was sold for $700,000.

It seemed like a great deal for the structure and eight acres on the Housatonic River, Cohen explained, but he wasn't aware of the complex pre-development costs, state, and local approvals it would entail. Seven individually owned homes adjacent to the property were also acquired and demolished for parking and site access.

"If I knew today what I knew then, I'm not sure we'd be sitting here," he said, joining the breakfast remotely over Zoom.

Cohen praised the town's government, explaining that the redesigns and critiques "Could not have been done in a friendlier way, in a more helpful way," and the two Massachusetts governors serving during the project's tenure. The Eagle Mill redevelopment is supported by state and federal grants, as well as low-income housing tax credits.

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