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Steamboat Springs — Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., is visiting Northwest Colorado today on a tour that includes a stop in Steamboat Springs.

Salazar is scheduled to meet with elected officials and community leaders at 10:30 a.m. in Olympian Hall to discuss his regional priorities for Northwest Colorado. Salazar has divided the state into 10 regions that share geographic, economic and community characteristics, and he has set goals for each region.

"The regional plans he's created for the different regions throughout the state are blueprints for his work in the U.S. Senate," said Michael Amodeo, a spokesman for the senator. "It's a whole host of very specific priorities he has."

In his plan for Northwest Colorado, Salazar has identified measures to achieve goals such as supporting a strong agricultural economy, protecting land and water and making healthcare affordable. Amodeo said the plan is not final, however, until local residents have a chance to take shots at it.

"These are plans he has mapped out, but they're not finalized," Amodeo said. "Once that input has been received, he'll finalize those priorities."

Diane Mitsch Bush, chairwoman of the Routt County Board of Commissioners, said she looks forward to more specificity from the senator.

"The priorities certainly touch on many of the issues we're concerned with," she said. "This is very vague and very general. We'll be asking for some more specifics."

Officials also will look to point out things that aren't covered in Salazar's Northwest Colorado plan.

"One of the issues that we think is critical that isn't in his regional plan are the issues related to affordability," County Commissioner Nancy Stahoviak said. "I believe that probably as he travels throughout our region, he's going to hear about work force housing - no doubt about it."

Salazar also will receive a joint letter from the county, the city of Steamboat Springs and the Yampa Valley Airport Commission urging him to help pass the 2008 authorization of the Federal Aviation Administration. For months the FAA has been funded through continuing resolutions. Those resolutions only maintain the status quo and do not include expected increases in fees such as "passenger facility charges." Airport projects such as a $3.8 million taxiway improvement at Yampa Valley Regional Airport are counting on the increase to help fund the project.

"We're asking for his assistance in passing that bill," said Mike Forney, chairman of the Yampa Valley Airport Commission. "This will give us a critical source of revenue for our capital projects. The Senate hasn't finalized this particular bill so we can get funding locked in."