This property has a documented history as a dry cleaning facility going back to 1976. 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.
A dry-cleaning facility using perchloroethylene (PCE) solvents operated at this property from late 1976 through 1984, with a concrete sump for solvent spillage and a dedicated dry-cleaning unit installed during that period. Groundwater beneath and downgradient of the site is severely contaminated, with PCE concentrations reaching 38,000 µg/L — more than 7,000 times the Wisconsin NR 140 Enforcement Standard — along with elevated levels of trichloroethylene (TCE), cis-1,2-dichloroethylene, and vinyl chloride. The contamination plume extends off-site to the east, and Wisconsin DNR has required offsite monitoring wells and piezometers to delineate its extent, while 2024 sub-slab vapor testing confirmed exceedances of Vapor Action Levels indicating an active vapor intrusion pathway. This site remains an open Wisconsin DNR Environmental Remediation Program case, with a 2025 Technical Assistance response identifying potential contamination of sanitary sewer utilities as an additional concern requiring investigation. 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.
The dry-cleaning operations that introduced PCE solvents into the subsurface at this site ran entirely within the pre-1986 window, from 1976 through 1984. The extensive groundwater remediation needed to address concentrations thousands of times above enforcement standards, ongoing vapor intrusion mitigation, offsite plume containment, and sewer utility investigation represent future obligations that those pre-1986 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
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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.