This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1894. 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 developed since at least 1894, with documented uses including a sausage factory, a filling station with four underground storage tanks (confirmed by the 1951 Sanborn map), a dry cleaner, a print shop, and other commercial operations spanning nearly a century before the current building was constructed in the early 1980s. Petroleum volatile organic compounds — including benzene, naphthalene, ethylbenzene, toluene, and xylenes — have been confirmed in soil near the former filling station, and groundwater monitoring wells in the southeast corner of the site show benzene and other petroleum compounds exceeding Wisconsin DNR NR 140 Enforcement Standards. Trichloroethylene and vinyl chloride have also been detected above regulatory thresholds, and site-wide soil fill from pre-1937 building demolitions contains lead and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons above residual contaminant levels. Wisconsin DNR has directed additional soil and groundwater investigation work at the site. 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.
Commercial and industrial operations at this property — including a filling station with underground storage tanks, a dry cleaner, a print shop, and manufacturing uses — have been documented as far back as 1894 and continued for nearly a century before 1986, during which time petroleum compounds, chlorinated solvents, and heavy metals were introduced into the soil and groundwater. The additional soil investigation, groundwater monitoring, and remediation work that Wisconsin DNR has directed under the state's Environmental Remediation Program represent substantial ongoing and future costs that the pre-1986 commercial general liability carriers for these operations 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.