This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station predating 1986. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could help fund the multi-phase investigation and remediation work ahead under Wisconsin DNR oversight.
This property at 725 Smith Street in Green Bay served as a regional bus station with five underground storage tanks — three diesel, one gasoline, and one waste oil — installed and operational well before 1986, as confirmed by a prior BRRTS incident closed in January 1989 for UST decommissioning. A Phase II Environmental Site Assessment completed in March 2024 identified petroleum volatile organic compounds and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons consistent with decades of fuel storage and dispensing. Groundwater sampling revealed benzene at 180 µg/L — thirty-six times the NR 140 Enforcement Standard — along with ethylbenzene, toluene, and multiple PAH compounds exceeding preventive action limits. Sub-slab vapor sampling in February 2025 confirmed benzene and ethylbenzene above residential screening levels, establishing a vapor intrusion pathway. That history could support an insurance coverage claim against the carriers who issued policies more than 40 years ago — coverage that could help fund the cleanup ahead.
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 Wisconsin — and those policies may provide coverage that remains enforceable today. 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.
Five underground storage tanks holding diesel, gasoline, and waste oil were installed and operated at this property as part of a regional bus station well before 1986, with fuel storage and dispensing activities spanning decades and a decommissioning incident already closed by the Wisconsin DNR in January 1989. The additional soil and groundwater investigation now required under the NR 700 series, the ongoing vapor intrusion assessment, and the remediation and long-term compliance monitoring ahead represent substantial future costs that the pre-1986 insurance carriers for the businesses that operated here may be obligated to fund.
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.
What We Look For
- Historical insurance policies (pre-1986)
- Policy numbers, carrier names, and coverage periods
- Connection between contamination timing and policy period
- Evidence linking cleanup obligation to insured activity
What We Deliver
- Historical Coverage Chart
- Trigger Analysis & Property/Policy Nexus
- Coverage strategy with recommendations
- Insurance funding for your remediation
- Claims Management
The Restorical Proven Process
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Contact UsThis analysis is preliminary and based on publicly available records. Restorical Research is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.