Santa Ana : Milwaukee Bucks Won’t Become Santa Ana Bucks

The Milwaukee Bucks basketball team will not be moving to Santa Ana.

Herbert Kohl, an investor from the Wisconsin city, said Friday that he will buy the National Basketball Assn. franchise and keep it in Milwaukee.

The price and details of the agreement were not disclosed.

A group of Santa Ana developers, negotiating with the city to build a $35-million domed arena downtown, had held preliminary talks with Bucks owner Jim Fitzgerald about buying the franchise.

Fitzgerald put the team up for sale last month, saying he hoped it would stay in Milwaukee.

City Manager Robert C. Bobb said he was disappointed but still convinced that Santa Ana would be able to attract an NBA team.

“It’s too bad, but we’re not going to let this stop us,” he said. “We’re going to continue to work with the NBA and (franchise) owners interested in moving into a more profitable market, such as Orange County.”

Bobb called Kohl’s purchase “a good move for the city of Milwaukee.”

Kohl, a Milwaukee native, said he was pleased and delighted to be the Bucks’ new owner.

“The Milwaukee Bucks are in Milwaukee, and they’re going to stay in Milwaukee,” he said.

The Bucks, with a record of 41-18 thus far this season, lead the NBA Central Division by 7 1/2 games over the Detroit Pistons.