KENOSHA, Wis. -- Janesville isn't the only Wisconsin community to lose a significant employer in recent years, but one nearby city was forced to undertake a dramatic rebuilding effort two decades ago and it's still recovering.

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Rome wasn't built in a day and nothing is ever rebuilt that quickly either. The city of Kenosha was left shell-shocked by a Chrysler factory closure in the late 1980s. Residents and city officials had to find new ground and fast. The lessons learned by Kenosha officials and residents might lend guidance to Janesville's community leaders.

When Chrysler announced it would close its Kenosha plant in 1988, in one day 5,000 auto workers lost their jobs.

"It was very difficult. It was extremely difficult," said Kenosha Mayor Keith Bosman. "Some families had a hard time getting through it."

Now Kenosha's mayor, Bosman was a first-term city councilman at the time.

"I think it probably took 5, 6, 7 years to really recover, and certain families never really recovered," he said.

The shutdown came suddenly, setting the city on a path to Rust Belt re-invention.

The city's mayor at the time, Pat Moran, had just taken office as mayor.

"'The sky is falling, the sky is falling, Chicken Little,' and you say, 'Ugh, it's not going to fall,' and then one day it falls," Moran said.

To get a perspective on the extent of Chrysler's presence of Keonsha, people need only look at what replaced it. The Kenosha Public Museum, an American Civil War museum, and hundreds of condominiums now stand in the place of what was once a very large factory, WISC-TV reported.

In spite of the outside mood, Moran said that decided that day that Kenosha's success or failure would be all about attitude.

"You hit this fork in the road and you say, 'Well, one says danger and one says opportunity.' Well, if you're going to look at the danger end and 'Oh poor me,' you're not going to get out of your rut," he said.

Three years before the assembly line ground to a halt, a Kenosha city committee considered the possibility of Chrysler's closure. They decided Kenosha needed to enhance its image, add lakefront development -- and to survive -- diversify.

Local clothing store owner Mike Bjorn said that he thinks the changes ultimately benefited the city.

"If anything, I think it's a more stable community the way it's worked out," he said.

His 28-year-old shop stands just steps from what was once Kenosha's economic engine.

Bjorn said that he believes it was the economic boom of the late '80s and '90s that carried Kenosha and his clothing store through one of the city's toughest times.

In today's market, he said he believes Janesville leaders will have to work harder, but can make it if they make their city a destination.

"The different attractions that Janesville has, they have to flaunt those attractions and think about what those will be, but to replace the auto industry will be difficult," he said.

Moran said that Janesville's people have the power to remake their home.

"Life is nothing but a series of beginnings and endings. You have an era ending, but there's a new chapter in the book to begin, and it's all up to you. You guys are the writers. You're writing the story."

None of this is to say that Kenosha's recovery isn't shrouded with some imperfections. Some told WISC-TV that many of the condos have never sold and too many others were built to flip and never lived in.

However, the lakefront's welcoming appeal has helped them attract other industries. Fortunately for them, all of that land was cleared off by Chrysler and the city was actually able to buy it for $1.

Chrysler tore everything above ground down, but it cost millions to clean up years of pollution below the surface.

The GM plant in Janesville is likely to stay for a while, but many Kenosha residents said that thye believe removing it as soon as possible is key. It removes the bad memories and allows the city to move forward.

Kenosha is still home to a Chrysler engine plant, which employs about 800 people. It's currently part of Chrysler's 30-day shutdown. There is talk of retooling the facility for a new line of engines, but the mayor said that he fears if that doesn't happen, it could close.

He said that is something he believes the city is prepared to handle.

"Back 20 years ago, Chrysler was the main cog in our engine in Kenosha, if you will. And we developed industrial parks from that time on, where we've added a lot of new industry," Bosman said. "If one particular business should suddenly go away, we're better able to cope with it."

The mayor said that the entire community has been mentally preparing itself for the day auto-making leaves Kenosha for good.