Holding onto the 2013 bike race may prove a more daunting task than the others, though. The sluggish economy has tightened corporate purse strings, and Lance Armstrong's public disgrace has created image problems for cycling.
But Brady said he feared that the race could disappear if it did not take place this year.
"It's my feeling that if you lose '13, '14 is going to be tough to get back," Brady said.
He said he had talked to companies about sponsorship, he but would not identify them. City costs also have become a factor for organizers of races and other events because the Nutter administration charges for police, street cleaning, and other expenses.
Last year, the city charged Chauner $345,000 - most of it still unpaid because, he said, officials have not been willing to explain how they arrived at that figure. Mark McDonald, a spokesman for Mayor Nutter, said the city gave Chauner an itemized estimate prior to the race, and he ignored requests for payment.
Brady, also chairman of the Philadelphia Democratic City Committee, said he was not concerned about that dispute.
"I'm certainly not going to worry about his bills," Brady said. "That's between him and the city."
Brady said he did not have in mind a sponsor or sponsors who could provide the financial push to save the 2013 cycling championship, but he said he thought it could be saved "if we can move quick enough."
He said he and others had discussed shortening the course to save money but also to ensure that cyclists whiz by more often to generate excitement in the crowd. Shorter courses have become more popular in American cycling as organizers seek to make events more like "NASCAR in tights," one source said.
Brady said some people believe they have a week left to save the 2013 cycling championship but that others say there is more time than that.
"I just have to make sure I get enough help to get it done," Brady said. Nutter, who has pledged to bring the race back in 2014, told Brady he would support him if he was successful in identifying sponsors and organizers who could put together the competition this year. It had been scheduled for June 2.
City Council members James F. Kenney, Mark Squilla, Curtis Jones Jr., and Dennis O'Brien are working on the effort with Brady, he said.
Jane Lipton, executive director of the Manayunk Development Corp., joined Brady at the brunch meeting at Winnie's Le Bus in Manayunk, where those two were seated at a table with eight others.
Brady and Lipton spoke to reporters after their hour-long private discussion. "It is extremely gratifying that we are on the same page," Lipton said. "We will not give up until there is no other option."
Contact Miriam Hill at 215-854-5520 or hillmb@phillynews.com. Follow her on Twitter @miriamhill.
