Turn an Unarmed Guard Request Into Clear Posts and Duties

Choose the exact post purpose

Separate reception, access control, standing presence, foot patrol, vehicle patrol, parking observation and incident reporting. A guard may cover more than one duty only when the route and timing make that possible. List the priority if two needs occur at once.

Downtown Los Angeles contains financial, civic, arts, fashion, historic and residential areas, while adaptive reuse has created thousands of housing units in former commercial buildings. Lobby and circulation assumptions should come from the actual property, not from a generic “commercial” label.

Write visitor and access rules

Identify who may enter, what ID or authorization is accepted, who can approve an exception and what the guard records. Include deliveries, vendors, after-hours workers, keys, access cards and lockout requests. State when management or law enforcement is contacted.

Avoid asking the guard to invent policy at the desk. Provide an approved tenant, resident, employee or vendor list through a controlled process and set a rule for outdated information.

Build a patrol route that can be completed

Mark required points, route limits, expected frequency and areas that must not be left uncovered. If the guard leaves a lobby for rounds, state what happens at the door during that time. Define how missed, shortened or interrupted rounds are recorded.

For a port or industrial property, the site can contain widely separated gates, loading points, yards and rail. The Port of Los Angeles alone spans 7,500 acres with 25 cargo terminals and 122 miles of rail. Those facts are regional context, not a claim that one guard can cover a large complex.

Specify useful reports

Choose the events that need immediate notice and those that belong in a shift report. A useful record names the time, location, observation, action, person notified and unresolved follow-up. Set the delivery time and recipient.

Ask to see an anonymized sample report before award. Confirm whether the proposed platform, paper log or email process fits the buyer’s retention and privacy needs.

Verify company and guard records

Use the DCA license search to match the bidder’s legal entity and PPO. Request the current insurance certificate for the same entity. Ask how the provider confirms each assigned person’s active guard registration, tracks required training and controls substitutions.

California’s training floor does not prove familiarity with a specific lobby, yard or tenant policy. Add a property orientation and signed post-order acknowledgment to the launch plan.

Compare coverage, not just the hourly line

The City of Los Angeles public schedule effective February 20, 2025 lists an unarmed officer at $30.65 per hour in that contract context. A private quote may be lower or higher because hours, minimum shifts, supervision, insurance, equipment and commercial terms differ.

Use the cost guide to model total hours. Then use the post-orders checklist to confirm the quoted duty matches the requested duty.

Prepare the assignment for a clean start

Approve the final post orders, site map, access list, contacts, report form and escalation chart before the first shift. Schedule an early service review and require revisions to be issued as controlled documents, not informal text messages.

If unarmed coverage fits the property and schedule, Get a Quote. If the buyer is still deciding between service models, compare the armed guide and mobile patrol guide.