The City of Carlsbad has made an investment in the future, signing off on a lease for a community laboratory that will house fledgeling life science businesses.
The start-up incubator and science education center would be located at the former Farmers Insurance auto claims building at 2351 Faraday Ave. The City approved a proposal to lease the building to Bio, Tech and Beyond, to manage the facility on Jan. 29.
The project's aims include the creation of new life sciences companies and making new jobs in Carlsbad; adding to the city's life science cluster, adding to the city's core technology base, resulting in new products and patents; and serving as a base for regional science education outreach efforts.
Life Technologies and Genoptix Medical Laboratory are already Carlsbad-based, and the city hopes that the incubator will launch businesses with similar track records.
"Having an incubator and community lab in Carlsbad improves the entrepreneurial environment for life sciences," said Kathy Dodson, economic development manager for the City of Carlsbad in a statement. "Carlsbad is home to many important life sciences companies and Bio, Tech and Beyond will be a center for innovation in this industry."
Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Ted Owen said the incubator , which is adjacent to the Chamber's location, is a welcome addition to the area.
"The Chamber supports any effort that leads to the creation of new jobs, that launches new businesses and helps advance technology," Owen said. “This incubator has that potential.”
The community laboratory will allow people who want to bring their scientific ideas to life to rent space in the incubator to run experiments and test out the ideas by renting space in the facility instead of having to buy their own equipment.
"The incubator is about enabling citizen scientists to translate their ideas into experiments, and then to translate their experimental results into companies," Kevin Lustig, founder and CEO of Assay Depot, a San Diego software company that is spearheading the project.
He said Bio, Tech and Beyond particularly will focus on serving as a resource hub for anyone interested in researching rare or orphan diseases. The lab will be Biosafety Level One, meaning that it won't handle disease-causing organisms.
The incubator plans on becoming self-sufficient by raising money through membership fees, corporate sponsorships, science challenges, crowd funding, event and course fees and grants. The incubator team has a goal of launching at least eight start-up companies in the first two years, enrolling 50 paying members and offering at least four sciences courses per year.
The city will lease the 6,000-square-foot building for $1 a year for five years. The city will repair the building's aging heating and ventilation system and cover the costs of gas and electricity for one year. It will also continue to pay for trash removal and landscaping for the five-year term of the lease.
The incubator's managers will pay for all tenant improvements and furnish the lab with experimental equipment and instruments valued at $250,000. They will donate their time to run the lab and counsel start-up companies for two years, after which they expect to hire staff. The total valuation of labor and expenses over the five years is estimated at $877,000.
The start-up incubator and science education center would be located at the former Farmers Insurance auto claims building at 2351 Faraday Ave. The City approved a proposal to lease the building to Bio, Tech and Beyond, to manage the facility on Jan. 29.
The project's aims include the creation of new life sciences companies and making new jobs in Carlsbad; adding to the city's life science cluster, adding to the city's core technology base, resulting in new products and patents; and serving as a base for regional science education outreach efforts.
Life Technologies and Genoptix Medical Laboratory are already Carlsbad-based, and the city hopes that the incubator will launch businesses with similar track records.
"Having an incubator and community lab in Carlsbad improves the entrepreneurial environment for life sciences," said Kathy Dodson, economic development manager for the City of Carlsbad in a statement. "Carlsbad is home to many important life sciences companies and Bio, Tech and Beyond will be a center for innovation in this industry."
Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Ted Owen said the incubator , which is adjacent to the Chamber's location, is a welcome addition to the area.
"The Chamber supports any effort that leads to the creation of new jobs, that launches new businesses and helps advance technology," Owen said. “This incubator has that potential.”
The community laboratory will allow people who want to bring their scientific ideas to life to rent space in the incubator to run experiments and test out the ideas by renting space in the facility instead of having to buy their own equipment.
"The incubator is about enabling citizen scientists to translate their ideas into experiments, and then to translate their experimental results into companies," Kevin Lustig, founder and CEO of Assay Depot, a San Diego software company that is spearheading the project.
He said Bio, Tech and Beyond particularly will focus on serving as a resource hub for anyone interested in researching rare or orphan diseases. The lab will be Biosafety Level One, meaning that it won't handle disease-causing organisms.
The incubator plans on becoming self-sufficient by raising money through membership fees, corporate sponsorships, science challenges, crowd funding, event and course fees and grants. The incubator team has a goal of launching at least eight start-up companies in the first two years, enrolling 50 paying members and offering at least four sciences courses per year.
The city will lease the 6,000-square-foot building for $1 a year for five years. The city will repair the building's aging heating and ventilation system and cover the costs of gas and electricity for one year. It will also continue to pay for trash removal and landscaping for the five-year term of the lease.
The incubator's managers will pay for all tenant improvements and furnish the lab with experimental equipment and instruments valued at $250,000. They will donate their time to run the lab and counsel start-up companies for two years, after which they expect to hire staff. The total valuation of labor and expenses over the five years is estimated at $877,000.