Two Trustees Join Hancock Shaker Village Board of Directors

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Hancock Shaker Village has appointed two trustees to its board of directors.

Caroline Holland, managing director of Mill Town in Pittsfield, Mass., and William H. Vogt, retired managing director of JP Morgan Chase & Co., join 17 additional members of the board, chaired by Diane Eshleman.

"On behalf of the trustees and staff at Hancock Shaker Village, I want to express my enthusiasm and gratitude about our two new board members," Eshleman said. "We are thrilled to welcome Bill back to our family, as he served as a trustee and energetic board chair for the Village some years ago. Carrie’' experience, combined with her knowledge of the local community, brings valuable perspective and great creativity to our endeavors."

"We're growing, and a dynamic, well-rounded board is essential in helping achieve our goal of preserving the Shaker legacy and making it relevant for generations to come," Hancock Shaker Village Director Jennifer Trainer Thompson said. "I am personally delighted to welcome Bill and Carrie."

Holland leads operations, strategy, and project execution for Mill Town, an impact investment fund focused on the Berkshires. She has broad experience in finance, national security and risk management. Previously, she was strategy and business development manager for General Dynamics Mission Systems in Pittsfield. Holland also serves on the boards of Berkshire Natural Resources Council and Barrington Stage Company. She holds a master of arts in international conflict and security studies from the University of Oregon and a bachelor of arts from the University of Richmond.

Vogt, during a 30-year career at JP Morgan Chase & Co., held various management positions in corporate and municipal finance and private banking in New York, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Lagos and London. He is a director of both Camphill Village USA, a nonprofit community of adults with developmental disabilities in Copake, N.Y., and of Camphill Ghent, an elder community in Chatham, N.Y. Vogt is also a director of the Camphill Village Copake Foundation and serves on the town of Stockbridge's planning board. He previously served as a Hancock Shaker Village trustee from 2005-2010, serving as chairman from 2008-2010. He holds an undergraduate degree from Georgetown University and served in the U.S. Army for four years.


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Pittsfield ConCom OKs Wahconah Park Demo, Ice Rink

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Conservation Commission has OKed the demolition of Wahconah Park and and the installation of a temporary ice rink on the property. 

The property at 105 Wahconah St. has drawn attention for several years after the grandstand was deemed unsafe in 2022. Planners have determined that starting from square one is the best option, and the park's front lawn is seen as a great place to site the new pop-up ice skating rink while baseball is paused. 

"From a higher level, the project's really two phases, and our goal is that phase one is this demolition phase, and we have a few goals that we want to meet as part of this step, and then the second step is to rehabilitate the park and to build new a new grandstand," James Scalise of SK Design explained on behalf of the city. 

"But we'd like these two phases to happen in series one immediately after the other." 

On Thursday, the ConCom issued orders of conditions for both city projects. 

Mayor Peter Marchetti received a final report from the Wahconah Park Restoration Committee last year recommending a $28.4 million rebuild of the grandstand and parking lot. In July, the Parks Commission voted to demolish the historic, crumbling grandstand and have the project team consider how to retain the electrical elements so that baseball can continue to be played. 

Last year, there was $18 million committed between grant funding and capital borrowing. 

This application approved only the demolition of the more than 100-year-old structure. Scalise explained that it establishes the reuse of the approved flood storage and storage created by the demolition, corrects the elevation benchmark, and corrects the wetland boundary. 

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