This property has a documented history as an industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1938. 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.
Industrial manufacturing operations began at this property in 1938 and continued through 1985, encompassing lighting fixture manufacturing, brass, chrome, and copper plating, solvent degreasing with a 10,000-gallon perchloroethylene (PCE) storage tank, and paint mixing, with artillery shell production also occurring during World War II. Investigations dating to 1985 confirmed metals contamination in the plating area and PCE in subsurface water, and a 1995 Phase II Environmental Site Assessment detected PCE and its breakdown product trichloroethylene (TCE) in soil and groundwater. In-situ biological reductive dechlorination treatment was conducted in 2009 and 2011, a vapor mitigation system was installed in 2020 after vapor intrusion was detected above Wisconsin DNR screening levels, and sediment remediation planning is underway following observed surface water impacts. Groundwater monitoring and site investigation under the Wisconsin DNR Environmental Remediation Program continue through 2026. 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.
Industrial plating and solvent degreasing operations at this site spanned nearly five decades beginning in 1938, placing all contaminating activity squarely within the pre-1986 window. The ongoing groundwater monitoring, vapor mitigation, sediment remediation, and continued investigation ahead represent substantial future costs that those historical carriers 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.