According to the mayor, Gov. Greg Abbott was surprised by the takeover of a public park in Eagle Pass, Texas.

(CNN) — Mayor Rolando Salinas told CNN by phone Thursday that Eagle Pass officials turned a blind eye when state authorities took over the city park without consulting the city at the behest of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.

“The state took full possession and control of Shelby Park,” Salinas said.

Shelby Park is a public space used by Abbott’s border security initiative, known as Operation Lone Star, which uses tools and equipment including the controversial border buoys and razor wire.

Salinas said he received a call Wednesday from a Texas Department of Public Safety official saying the state was taking full control of the park under an emergency declaration issued by Abbott regarding the immigration influx.

But the mayor says the timing of the emergency declaration doesn’t make sense to him because encounters with immigrants in Eagle Pass have dropped dramatically. Unlike a few weeks ago, when thousands of migrants were encountered in one day, Salinas said only 527 migrants were encountered yesterday – a pattern, he said, that held throughout the week.

On Wednesday night, Salinas posted a video on Facebook showing a temporary fence at the entrance to the park, guarded by military vehicles.

“This is something the city has not signed on to,” Salinas said in the video. “This is not the city of Eagle Pass denying people access to the park.”

“Our legal team is looking into what’s going on, just to make sure everything is being done legally,” Salinas added.

Texas used a disaster declaration from May 2021 to take over Eagle Pass Public Park this week, which was renewed in December 2023, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s spokeswoman Rayna Az told CNN on Thursday.

“Texas is lining our southern border with additional miles of razor wire and anti-climb barriers to prevent and deter record levels of illegal immigration invited by President Biden’s reckless open border policies. Instead of enforcing federal immigration laws, the Biden administration is allowing Mexican cartels into our country. allows unrestricted entry for human smuggling. Texas will continue to deploy Texas National Guard troops, DPS police officers and more barriers using all tools and strategies to respond to President Biden’s ongoing border crisis,” Eze said in a statement. .

Eze did not respond to CNN’s questions about the timing of the park’s takeover, as encounters with migrants have recently declined.

Eagle Pass Mayor Rolando Salinas said at a news conference Thursday that the state “has made it clear that it will reimburse the city for the costs associated with the takeover”. “We’re not saying ‘OK, well,’ but at least we’ll get the money. It’s still unacceptable,” Salinas said.