This property has a documented history as an industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1935. 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 has been in industrial use since the late 1880s, with a succession of machine shop operations documented continuously from at least 1935 through 1982. Soil sampling at all four investigation locations exceeds Wisconsin NR 720 groundwater protection standards for metals including lead, arsenic, selenium, and mercury, while additional exceedances for benzene, tetrachloroethylene (PCE), PCBs, and multiple PAHs — including benzo(a)pyrene above non-industrial direct contact values — confirm widespread contamination consistent with decades of cutting oils, solvents, and hydraulic fluids. Groundwater was encountered at six to eight feet below ground surface, well within the zone of contaminated fill soils, and the property is directly adjacent to the Kinnickinnic River. Wisconsin DNR has designated a responsible party, approved a completed Site Investigation, and the case remains open under the Environmental Remediation Program with groundwater monitoring and remediation work ahead. 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.
Machine shop operations at this property ran continuously from at least 1935 through 1982, introducing cutting oils, chlorinated solvents, PCBs, and heavy metals into the soil and shallow groundwater throughout a nearly century-long span of pre-1986 industrial activity. The future work required under the Wisconsin DNR's Environmental Remediation Program — including groundwater monitoring and remediation, cleanup of soils exceeding NR 720 standards for lead, arsenic, PCE, and PAHs, and protection of the adjacent Kinnickinnic River — represents substantial ongoing obligations that historical pre-1986 carriers may be required 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.