This property has a documented history as a industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1917. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could fund a cleanup — and recover costs already spent.

Why Historical Insurance Policies May Be Accessible

Pre-1986 Commercial General Liability (CGL) policies were occurrence-based and did not contain an effective pollution exclusion in Washington. If contamination occurred while those policies were active, those historical insurance carriers may still have a legal obligation to fund the cleanup costs, even if the business closed or the property changed hands.

Industrial operations at this property began as early as 1917 and included ship building, metal fabrication, painting, and generator manufacturing — activities known to generate the precise contaminant mix documented here: metals, TPH, VOCs, and PCBs. These operations spanned the entire period during which occurrence-based CGL policies were written without an effective pollution exclusion, and the documents explicitly link the contamination to those historical uses rather than any recent event. The Agreed Order's corrective actions, stormwater treatment infrastructure, and institutional controls represent remediation expenditures that historical carriers who insured this property during its pre-1986 industrial tenure may be obligated both to recover and to fund going forward.

Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful coverage claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage. Restorical then manages the claim, including accounting, to ensure the cleanup is funded in a timely manner.