This property has a documented history as a landfill going back to 1937. 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 served as a historic fill site from the 1930s through the 1950s, with aerial photographs from 1937 and 1951 documenting significant earth-moving activities and fill placement that reached depths of up to 66 feet. The fill material — including asphalt, slag, foundry sand, and industrial debris — introduced arsenic, lead, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and volatile organic compounds including benzene, naphthalene, and trichloroethylene (TCE) into soil and groundwater. Groundwater monitoring has confirmed PAH concentrations exceeding Wisconsin DNR NR 140 enforcement standards in multiple monitoring wells, with contaminated groundwater flowing toward the Menomonee River. A Site Investigation Report and Remedial Action Plan have been approved under the Wisconsin DNR Environmental Remediation Program, and remediation obligations remain active. 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.
Fill operations at this property began in the late 1930s and continued through the mid-1950s, introducing industrial debris containing arsenic, lead, PAHs, and volatile organic compounds into soil and groundwater decades before 1986. The approved Remedial Action Plan, ongoing groundwater monitoring required to address NR 140 exceedances, and remediation work necessary to protect the Menomonee River corridor represent substantial future costs that the pre-1986 carriers of 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.