A large crowd filled the Downtown Conference Center Saturday for a town hall meeting to discuss the Hwy. 92 relocation project, a project vital to the future of the city and county. The greatest urgency of the project is to provide a means for emergency vehicles to travel north and south when there is a train blocking the railroad tracks. The Hwy. 92 project would build an underpass for the railroad tracks, Bankhead Highway and Strickland Street.

As it was billed, that was the main topic for discussion at Saturday’s meeting which featured 13th District Congressman David Scott, a Democrat who represents a portion of Douglas County and who has expressed a strong interest in the project.

But for some in Saturday’s crowd, the Hwy. 92 project wasn’t the only thing on their mind. They were interested in the proposed federal health care reform legislation and wanted to ask Rep. Scott his views on what has become one of the hottest issues in the Congress.

In answer to one question about health care Saturday, Cong. Scott said he didn’t know how he would vote on the issue but that he was interested in the “wishes and thoughts” of those in the 13th District. Other questions were not answered as the meeting ended after almost four hours with some concerned that they weren’t able to delve into the health care issue with the congressman.

The importance and far-ranging impact of this proposal creates many questions and concerns, and we ask Cong. Scott to return to Douglasville for a town hall meeting to face the voters in a forum that is not limited to a specific subject, one where residents can hear where Rep. Scott stands and where they can ask him questions. (According to his office, he has scheduled a meeting on health care August 28 in Austell, but the time and place had not been set as of Monday.)

We would also ask that 3rd District Cong. Lynn Westmoreland, a Republican who also represents a portion of Douglas County, schedule an open forum meeting here for the same purpose. It would even be worthwhile to have the two congressmen together to present the various proposals at the same meeting followed by questions and answers.

The remainder of the summer will be hot with the health care issue as there is now even talk on the table of raising taxes to pay for it. When Rep. Scott and Rep. Westmoreland return to Washington next month and prepare to vote on this legislation, they need to know first-hand the wishes of the folks in Douglas County and the rest of their districts, and they need to act accordingly.