Opponents to the lab at the site in Judd Street

RESIDENTS say they are being used as guinea pigs for the Knowledge Quarter after learning that biochemical laboratories could soon move into a new site close to homes, a primary school and the Town Hall – with neighbours warning they need reassurance or risk being left to inhale the fumes.

Residents in King’s Cross have said they are deeply alarmed by proposals for the new complex in Judd Street – a bespoke laboratory for LifeArc, an independent medical research charity.

The group already has labs in Stevenage, Edinburgh, and at the Francis Crick Institute where their research is trying to treat diseases like inflammatory bowel disease and rheumatoid arthritis.

The council previously granted planning consent for a new office building with some research space but after an amendment, what is now proposed is a two-storey roof extension with five three-metre waste gas chimneys as well as an extensive mechanical plant on the seventh floor.

Debbie Radcliffe, co-chair of the Bloomsbury Residents Action Group (BRAG) said: “It’s the unknown and the lack of trust.

“We’re an experiment. We are being guinea pigs for the Knowledge Quarter innovation district and I know that they will say this is for public benefit but the scale of money behind all of this is colossal.

“We are not opposed to medical research, but not in a densely packed residential area. We don’t know what will be emitted. It’s the sense of secrecy.”

A decision is due to be made today (Thursday) at a planning committee meeting in the Town Hall.

In its submission to the council BRAG has proposed six specific planning conditions it says are essential for safety and transparency, including a full disclosure of emissions, continuous air monitoring and independent verification.

Alex Gordon, who is co-chair of the Medway Court Tenants and Residents Association, said: “None of the people who are going to benefit from this investment are people who live locally. There is no spin off where they are helping to fix our drains or improve the street lighting, there is no benefit for local residents.

“It’s simply big tech, big pharmaceuticals moving in and squatting in our buildings and in our streets.”

Medway Court is a council-run block of 42 flats on the corner of Leigh Street and Judd Street.

“A lot of our neighbours have expressed concerns about what is going to be produced in the laboratory,” said Mr Gordon, adding: “The knowledge quarter is just branding – the people who live here are an afterthought. The only time you might see a councillor is in the run up to an election. They don’t come to speak to residents about what our views and concerns are about these new developments.”

The building once housed the National Institute for the Blind and Mr Gordon said that many people living in Medway Court used to volunteer at the charity when its headquarters were based there.

Life Arc believes it can make medical breakthroughs at the new research facilities

Trevor Shonfeld, co-chair of BRAG added: “It is scary, no one will know what they will be doing but they will be chucking out chemicals into the air – we don’t know what these will be – and we will be breathing it.”

Meta Zimmeck, who lives close to the development added: “The fact that we don’t know what will be emitted certainly concerns me.

“The knowledge quarter is a big scam, its big businesses and the council getting together to get as much money out of it as they can.”

A spokesperson representing Native Land and LifeArc said: “The proposals being assessed at the committee meeting are minor amendments to an already approved, lab-enabled scheme that allow us to tailor the building to the specific needs of LifeArc, a self-funded medical research charity. We take our responsibility to the community seriously and have met with the site neighbours, BRAG and others to discuss the future operations of the building alongside our work on site and will continue to do so.

“As part of our application, we commissioned an Air Quality & Odour Assessment report, which found LifeArc’s proposed operations will have a ‘negligible’ and ‘insignificant’ impact on local air quality – the lowest possible measurements as defined by regulatory bodies including the Environment Agency. This report is publicly available on the 105 Judd Street consultation website”

A Camden Council spokesperson said: “The council is currently considering a planning application for amendments to the approved development. Where residents have raised concerns, including regarding the future use of the site as laboratories, they have been fully considered and addressed in the officer’s report. The application will be determined by Planning Committee on Thursday evening.”