BATON ROUGE — City Hall now has a much larger security presence, with the city parish bringing in a private security firm alongside Baton Rouge Police units stationed outside the building.

Visitors now encounter security immediately upon entering. Inside, the building has also seen physical upgrades.

"We secured doors. We've put in bulletproof windows, bullet-resistant glass," Mayor-President Sid Edwards said.

This is a notable shift from earlier this year, when constables providing security had to be pulled due to budget cuts. The city parish has since hired Southern Defense and Security, a private firm based in Lafayette.

The increased security follows multiple incidents and threats aimed at city parish employees. Those include a man armed with a knife outside the mayor's office and the reported sexual assault of a city parish employee last month.

"Just being honest, there's a lot of guns in this building, okay? You have the constable, who does a great job with the sheriff's department, is in this building, as well as BRPD officers," Edwards said.

Edwards said the contract with Southern Defense and Security is short-term and is part of a multi-layered security approach, including making the building less vulnerable to anyone who walks in off the street.

WBRZ requested the contract between the city parish and Southern Defense and Security but has yet to receive a copy.