FAIRHOPE – Baldwin County Commissioner Chris Elliott said there was no doubt the wall built at the governor’s beach mansion was on a county right of way.

“We had a very large map with a graphic overlay of where the wall was,” Elliot said. “It was about a 60-foot encroachment all the way across the county’s right of way so there was really no doubt as to where the encroachment was or the nature of the encroachment.”

On May 6 the governor’s office agreed and after a meeting with county officials said the wall was coming down.

“We had a very productive meeting this morning with representatives from the governor’s office, and I think what happened at that meeting is that they saw how vital beach access is and access to county, public rights of way are,” Elliott said.

But Gov. Robert Bentley was recalcitrant in agreeing to remove the wall.

“That right-of-way, that has never been used for anything because it can’t be used for anything. It’s all grown up and no one has ever used it,” Bentley said.

Elliott called a news conference in Fairhope at 3 p.m. on May 6 to discuss the wall and the meeting with representatives of the governor’s office.

“I asked for a timeline (for removal) and they indicated they would provide it as soon as it was available,” Elliott said. “There will be no cost to the county taxpayers associated with this.”

Gulf Shores councilman Phillip Harris' construction company, Harris Construction, won the bid for the $1.8 million contract to refurbish the dilapidated mansion in the Fort Morgan area. Harris has referred all inquiries about the mansion to the governor's office and has not answered email inquiries specifically asking about the wall.

The governor’s office said the wall was put up as a security measure and Elliott said he understood those concerns and said the county was willing work with the state to address those issues.

After the wall’s removal.

“What we talked about was the governor’s office coming back to the commission to address some of those security concerns,” Elliott said. “We were fairly clear that that needed to come after this encroachment was removed, and, fortunately, they agreed to that.”

Elliott said the county has and will continue to protect rights of way with water access in Baldwin County.

“We in the county do not close public rights of way and especially not near the water,” he said. “That’s important to us.”

Media coverage, Elliott said, was a vital part to getting this story out and the encroachment remedied.

“I’ll go ahead and say I appreciate the media’s involvement in this and some editorials that were written about this encroachment,” Elliott said. “It’s a big deal for us here in Baldwin County, and I think the governor’s office saw just how big a deal it was, how precious our beach access is and our county rights of way are to the public.”