By John Byczkowski
The Cincinnati Enquirer

WASHINGTON - Eighty Cincinnatians stumped the halls of Congress Wednesday, visiting elected representatives and government officials to grease the skids for millions of dollars for local projects.

A sometimes chaotic day inside the machinery of government left some in the delegation believing they'd made an impact. Sen. Mike DeWine seemed to gain interest in tax credits for downtown, and Rep. John Boehner's office didn't know about that issue at all.

Told of the importance of replacing the Brent Spence Bridge, Rep. Steven LaTourette, a Republican who represents the eastern suburbs of Cleveland, said he'd be glad to help.

That was the intent of this first Cincinnati lobbying trip, organized by the Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce and the city's Young Presidents Organization.

The group fanned out for 16 meetings on Capitol Hill. Also scheduled were lunch at the National Republican Capitol Hill Club with Commerce Secretary Donald Evans, and meetings with pollsters and campaign officials.

At the start of the day, Rep. Rob Portman warned the group what they'd encounter would be "a combination of Survivor and The Apprentice. But at the end of the day, you're all going to be hired."

Still, some parts of the day looked more like the Three Stooges, as the 80 delegates - many of whom had never been to Capitol Hill - tried to negotiate their way through security to the right office in the right building.

Portman, R-Terrace Park, had warned the group to be focused in their meetings, to express their consensus on a limited number of issues, and not present everyone with a long "laundry list" of desires. The chamber had neatly summarized nine issues in a one-page "leave behind" document.

At the office of Boehner, R-West Chester, the group arrived in three waves, five minutes apart. Boehner was off at an education hearing, so the group met instead with Jeff Dobrozsi, an aide on education and workforce issues.

The group met in a small conference room with leather furniture, wildlife etchings and a clock stuck at high noon. The discussion with Dobrozsi was led by someone who could speak the lingo - Steve Feldmann, who once worked for Boehner as a staff counselor and is now director of community affairs for Fischer Group homebuilders in Crestview Hills.

Feldman ticked off the issues - 30 seconds on Brent Spence, 60 seconds on ethanol fuel taxes.

Dobrozsi then asked what was on everyone's mind. A laundry list came up: tort reform, higher education, health care, labor issues, taxes.

Paula Kollstedt of GE Transportation in Evendale brought the group back to the script, talking up an application for $90 million in tax credits for Fountain Square, and preserving jobs at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton. The discussion drifted through the No Child Left Behind Act and the outsourcing of jobs.

Did the group believe they made an impression?

Flatly, "No," said Chris Taylor, CEO of Crescent Park Corp. in West Chester. Dobrozsi "had certain views, the way he looked at things," and the group didn't sway him, Taylor said.

Dobrozsi, who reads the Ohio newspapers, said afterward most of the issues weren't new to him. He and Feldmann had talked at length by phone on Monday, when they covered more ground on Brent Spence.

"I knew I was going to agree with these guys on most issues," he said.

The $90 million in tax credits, however, was something Dobrozsi hadn't heard about, and he said he would follow that up.

That's what staffers do, said GE's Kollstedt, which is why meeting them is important. "They're the eyes and ears" of their bosses, she said, and the fact the group got an appointment shows Boehner wants to hear their views.

Larry Grypp of Western & Southern Financial Group said DeWine "showed up and gave us good time." Gary Conley of TechSolve said Sen. George Voinovich was already familiar with every issue on their list, but the visit was still worth it "to remind him we're here and there really are people connected with these issues."

LaTourette gave the group credit for broadening their thinking to come speak with him. LaTourette is on the House Transportation Committee, and - with Voinovich - is likely to be named to the House-Senate conference committee to write a final version of a six-year transportation funding bill.

Chip Gerhardt of KMK Consulting in Cincinnati told LaTourette about the bridge and the tax credits. "If you send me a note, I'm happy to help," LaTourette said.

"A lot of people think it's a waste of time" to talk to congressmen from other districts, LaTourette said later. But once Cleveland is taken care of, "I'm an Ohio guy," he said, and he's willing to help other Ohio cities.

Doug Moormann, vice president of government affairs for the chamber, admitted the trip was at times chaotic.

"We're learning as we're going along," he said, adding the group would apply lessons learned next year.

Just showing up was a victory, said Nick Vehr, vice president of economic development for the chamber.

"Any time you get 100 people to come up and see 11 elected members of Congress and say 'this is what's important to me,' that's great," Vehr said. Elected officials are always eager to hear from folks back home, he said, and "we brought a little piece of home to them."

E-mail johnb@enquirer.com