Retrofit Environmental is thrilled to share a story that hits close to home—right in Blue Earth, Minnesota! Meet Jenna Johnson, a passionate music teacher with a big dream: to open a local art center where kids and teachers could create, learn, and thrive. She found the perfect building… well, almost perfect.

BLUE EARTH CHEMICAL CLEAN-OUT

When Jenna and her husband bought a long-vacant building (we’re talking over 5 years of dust and mystery), they were ready to roll up their sleeves. But what they didn’t expect? Barrels. Of. Mystery. Waste.

Turns out, the building’s former life as a printing facility left behind thousands of gallons of unidentified hazardous materials. Jenna’s first thought? “Let’s just haul it to the local hazardous waste drop-off.” But the sheer volume was way beyond what the local site could handle.
That’s when a TRC customer pointed her in our direction—and we’re so glad they did.
Enter Michelle Gwin, one of our Environmental Experts, who quickly put Jenna at ease. As Jenna soon learned, cleaning up hazardous waste isn’t just about hauling stuff away. There are strict environmental regulations, safety protocols, and a whole lot of know-how involved.

Our team stepped in to:

• Assess the waste (safely and thoroughly)

• Educate Jenna on environmental compliance

• Create a clean-out plan

• Handle the disposal, efficiently and effectively

"We bought this huge building. When we signed the contract "as is"...I had no idea. It was in really bad shape." -Jenna Johnson

After a thorough chemical clean-out at her Blue Earth facility, Jenna was finally able to get back to what she does best—bringing her dream art center to life. With a long list of renovation projects ahead, she felt a huge sense of relief knowing she had a trusted partner in TRC. Not only did our team handle the hazardous waste safely and efficiently, but we also took the time to educate her on the ins and outs of environmental safety regulations—from universal waste rules to proper hazardous material handling. For a new business owner navigating unfamiliar territory, that guidance made all the difference. 

So, what exactly was lurking in the shadows of this old printing facility? A whole lot of legacy materials: printing press inks, industrial cleaners, sealers, and more. We uncovered dozens of 5-gallon buckets and 15–
20 full 55-gallon drums of various chemicals—Our team successfully removed multiple pallets of hazardous waste from Jenna’s building, by carefully sorting and packaged every item according to DOT standards & ensuring everything was safely prepped for off-site disposal.

The scope also included the decommissioning of a 1,000-gallon above-ground storage tank that had long outlived its purpose. The tank was roughly 1/3 full of black ink. The process lines running to and from the tank were also full and required cleaning. Cleaning out the piping is a very specialized process.

We're grateful to have had the opportunity to help Jenna, and are excited to see the art center develop!