GMCS switches security company

Copyright © 2008
Gallup Independent
By Bill Donovan
Staff writer

GALLUP — Beginning this past Monday, a new company has been providing security at the various public high schools in the county.

John Samford, the chief financial officer for the Gallup-McKinley County School district, said that the contract to provide security was transferred from Gallup Security, the company that had the contract for the past several years, to Western New Mexico Security.

The changeover came about not because of any complaints about the way that Gallup Security was carrying out its responsibility, said Samford, but because the district asked local companies to submit proposals to get the contract and WNM got the most points.

Gallup Security, WNM and Chief Security all submitted proposals, and a committee evaluated all three on the basis of what they could do for the district, manpower and several other factors. WNM ended up with 898 points, followed by Gallup Security with 776 points and Chief Security with 700 points.

Marco Abeita, the district’s purchasing director, said some members of the evaluations committee were sad to see the change since they hated to see some of the security force be replaced because they had done such a good job.

Gallup Security, which is owned and operated by Dennis Moeckel, continues to have the contract to provide personnel, such as ticket takers and timekeepers, at area school sports functions.

Abeita estimated that the security contract is worth about $250,000 and added that the cost to the district under WNM is about the same as it was with Gallup Security.

The security guards, who do not carry guns, are located at all of the high schools, patrolling the grounds and acting as gate-keepers on those campuses that are closed.
Both Samford and Abeita said that the changeover appeared to go well since there have been no complaints.

Attempts to get comments from WNM officials Wednesday were unsuccessful and Abeita said he wasn’t sure if some of the guards that worked for Gallup Security have been picked up by the new company.

“One of the evaluators asked about this as well,” Abeita said.