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Ashland center relocates BY JULIE SWENSEN ASHLAND - The Abdill-Ellis Lambda Community Center, which was scrambling for a new home after losing its lease, has found a new place not far away. The center, at 56 Third St., will move into what's now a film studio at 281 Fourth St. The new location has about twice as much space and is only about three blocks away. "We're very excited," said Joan Haukom, the center's executive director. "We're happy to stay in the same basic neighborhood.'' Haukom said they hope to be in by July 1. The Abdill-Ellis center, which hosts meetings and support groups, opened in 1996 after the 1995 murders of Michelle Abdill and Roxanne Ellis, a Medford lesbian couple. The center rented the home for $875 a month, and hoped to renew its lease for two more years. But this spring, its owner opted to turn the Victorian cottage into a vacation rental. The new space will be more expensive to rent; Haukom wouldn't specify how much more, but said they'll need to continue to raise funds to meet expenses. "Unfortunately, we have to bite the bullet there," Haukom said. But she called the new location "a welcome change." The center on Third Street is "pretty crowded," and more than 10-12 people could not be comfortable in a room, she said. When hundreds of people gathered for a candlelight vigil at the Plaza in Ashland after the murder of Mathew Shepard, a gay Wyoming man, there was no way the center could accommodate them afterward. The new digs will feature a big common area for large gatherings, plus room for office space. An open house celebration will be held sometime in July. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA