This property has a documented history as an industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1903. 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 before 1903, with documented operations by 1949 including a municipal incinerator, repair shops, a vehicle maintenance and storage yard, and an underground storage tank fueling system. A Phase II Environmental Site Assessment confirmed widespread polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and metals contamination in fill material across the site, along with tetrachloroethylene (PCE) detections consistent with decades of industrial activity. Groundwater monitoring has revealed concentrations exceeding Wisconsin NR 140 standards, and the Wisconsin DNR has directed additional investigation including sediment assessment, vapor intrusion evaluation, and emerging contaminant testing as part of the active Environmental Remediation Program case. 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 operations at this property date back more than eight decades before 1986, with documented uses including a municipal incinerator, repair shops, vehicle maintenance yards, and underground storage tank fueling systems by 1949 — decades during which PAHs, metals, and chlorinated solvents were being introduced into soil and groundwater. The ongoing and future cleanup work directed by the Wisconsin DNR under the Environmental Remediation Program — including additional groundwater monitoring, sediment assessment, vapor intrusion evaluation, emerging contaminant testing, and site remediation — represents substantial costs that the historical pre-1986 carriers for 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.