JANESVILLE, Wis. -- Hopes to lure a Spanish manufacturer of trains to Rock County were dashed on Tuesday when the company announced it was open its plant in the Milwaukee area.

The former LSI building, vacated after General Motors ended production in Janesville, could have housed Talgo's new production line and their projected 125 workers. The move is a near miss for Janesville, but Talgo isn't the only company having shown interest in the area's possibilities.

"We didn't get this one, but I get a call or two almost every couple of days from companies interested in Janesville, so we'll get some," said Janesville economic development director Vic Grassman.

Every job created in Janesville is a step toward economic recovery, officials said. Talgo would have helped, but alone wouldn't have been an economic cure for the county's ongoing woes.

"You can't lose what you never had," said Grassman.

Local business leaders forming an initiative called Rock County 5.0 are helping fund programs to make the area more competitive in the marketplace.

"We're going to have the permits accelerated. We're going to have workforce profiles. For example, if you need 10 cad-cam workers, we can show you 30 people who have those skills," said Grassman.

Area residents said that they know it will take more than one business to repair damage done during the recession.

"I'd like to see Janesville come above it, but there's so many areas that are down and there's so many things involved besides the train," said Janesville resident Milton Woodman.

"I believe things are going to get better as we continue to move forward. Janesville has been an awesome place to live and I think it's going to continue to get better," said Cheryl Potter, of Janesville.

Instead of dwelling on what could have been, this community will continue focusing on what still could be.

"We're moving forward. I expect it to be very exciting within the next year or two," said Grassman.

Talgo executives said one reason for choosing Milwaukee over Janesville was Milwaukee's harbor.

Locally, officials will continue marketing Janesville's strengths, including available industrial space.

That always brings up the big question of what happens to the GM plant. GM executives said on Tuesday that there are no plans to reopen any of its facilities.

In the meantime, Janesville's facility will continue to sit idle, WISC-TV reported.