During the next two weeks, Greater Cincinnati's regional planning agency will hold a series of public forums throughout the area concerning long-term plans for growth.

        The first forum will start 7 p.m. Monday, at the Warren County Administration Building, 406 Justice Drive, Lebanon. Others will be held in each of the other seven counties in the metropolitan area, part of a planning process called “Where Do We Grow From Here?”

        The Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Regional Council of Governments' Land Use Commission will distill from these public forums a set of key issues and then develop them into a regional land-use policy plan. Local governments can use that plan as a guide for their own land-use policies.

        “We're hoping it becomes a blueprint that communities can use for their comprehensive planning,” said Janet Keller, an OKI senior planner.

        Bob Ware, a planning official for Warren County, one of Ohio's fastest-growing counties, said he's glad the public will have a chance to contribute to OKI's land use planning process.

        “The residents get to give some real input to OKI,” Mr. Ware said. “It's a good first step.”

        Current zoning patterns in the region could lead to a scattered, pervasive spreading of subdivisions and commercial and industrial developments that create infrastructure needs communities can't pay for, said William Miller, OKI regional planning manager.

        “Instead of having an orderly progression of growth and planning and budgeting for the infrastructure to support that new growth, the new growth could be scattered anywhere,” he said. “That begs the questions, "Where is the infrastructure going to go and how are we going to pay for it?' ”

        This is the schedule for the rest of the forums, which all start at 7 p.m.:

        Boone County: Tuesday, Ryle High School, 10379 Kentucky 42, Union.

        Dearborn County: Wednesday, Perfect North Slopes, 19074 Perfect Lane, Lawrenceburg.

        Hamilton County: Thursday,19 TechSolve, 1111 Edison Drive, Cincinnati.

        Campbell County: Sept. 23, Newport High School, 900 E. Sixth St., Newport.

        Clermont County: Sept. 24, Clermont College, 4200 Clermont College Drive, Batavia.

        Kenton County: Sept. 25, Summit View Middle School, 5002 Madison Pike, Independence.

        Butler County: Sept. 26, D. Russel Lee Career Center, 3603 Hamilton-Middletown Road, Fairfield Township.

        Enquirer reporter Cindi Andrews contributed.

Putting money on the banks
Ripoff-front stadium? Not to diehard fans
River Front game a classic
Advance improves new limbs
Crackdown begins on teen drivers
Drugs, cash found in home after man shot
Local observatory gets historical marker
Obituary: George Hovekamp, businessman
Obituary: Graham Hunt, avid outdoorsman
Officials: Missing teen likely dead
Public gets say on plans
Tristate A.M. Report
West Nile virus hits local horses
BRONSON: Truth matters
HOWARD: Some Good News
PULFER: Christopher Reeve
SMITH AMOS: The new West High
Cincinnati Christian grows two campuses
Cops cite alcohol sales to minors
Dry, hot weather may drain the color from fall's foliage
OSU patient joins leukemia drug trial
Doctors return home to fill gap
Pols teeing off on privatization