Texas Gov. Greg Abbott took control of a public park in a border city plagued by illegal immigration without warning on Wednesday, its mayor alleged Thursday.
Eagle Pass Mayor Rolando Salinas said the state seized Shelby Park, erecting fences to keep out citizens — and even federal border agents — without any notice as part of Abbott’s emergency declaration to combat the migrant crisis.
Shelby Park, which abuts the Rio Grande, has been flooded with migrants crossing into Texas via the dangerous river.
“That is not a decision that we agreed to,” Salinas said in an impassioned speech Thursday.
“This is not something that we wanted. This is not something that we asked for as a city.”
Wednesday night, fencing had already blocked off the entrances and military trucks were parked inside, video Salinas shared shows.
According to Salinas, Texas’ Department of Public Safety told Eagle Pass officials that the state was seizing the 50-acre public park through a disaster declaration, an authority Texas officials have used before on the border.
In addition to reportedly offering no timetable, the state did not disclose how long they anticipated holding control over the park — meaning that a trove of events and festivals planned for the spring could be canceled.
Shelby Park touches the Rio Grande, where thousands of migrants swim from Mexico to the US every month. AFP via Getty Images“They will be denying access,” Salinas said. “Again, this is not the city of Eagle Pass denying access to the park. This is the state using that emergency declaration.”
The abrupt blockage has even extended to US Border Patrol agents, insiders told CBS News.
Texas National Guard units prevented the border agents from patrolling Shelby Park, which has been used in recent weeks to hold migrants in an outdoor staging area before they are transported for further processing.
“They are denying entry to Border Patrol agents to conduct our duties,” the official told the outlet, adding that they are not sure “what authority (Texas officials) have over the federal government.”
A spokesperson for Abbott did not respond to questions on whether the notice was sent without previous warning.
“Texas will continue to deploy Texas National Guard soldiers, DPS troopers, and more barriers, utilizing every tool and strategy to respond to President Biden’s ongoing border crisis,” spokesperson Renae Eze said in a statement.
Eagle Pass Mayor Rolando Salinas claims the state gave no prior warning before taking control of the 50-acre public park. APThe Department of Public Safety referred questions to the Texas Military Department, which was also unable to answer how much notice the city of Eagle Pass was given.
“The Texas National Guard has maintained a presence with security points and temporary barrier in Shelby Park since 2021. The current posture is to prepare for future illegal immigrant surges and to restrict access to organizations that perpetuate illegal immigrant crossings in the park and greater Eagle Pass area,” a spokesperson for the department said in an email.
A message left for Salinas was not immediately returned.
The mayor said he was looking at every legal avenue to fight against the takeover.
Other than being enraged by the state’s takeover of city land, Salinas questioned why the move comes after illegal crossings dropped this week once Mexico stepped up security and migrant deportations.
The closure was made as part of Abbott’s emergency declaration to combat the migrant crisis. James KeivomArrests for illegal crossings into the US from Mexico fell to about 2,500 on Monday, down from more than 10,000 on several days in December, according to US authorities.
Daily apprehensions stand around 400 to 500, Salinas claimed.
The surge led Abbott to renew an emergency declaration that “the surge of individuals unlawfully crossing the Texas–Mexico border posed an ongoing and imminent threat of disaster.”






