In the wake of the Dec. 16 school shooting in Newtown, Conn., the Cape Elizabeth School Board put the fast track on new security doors at its three school buildings to deny entry to anyone not “buzzed in” by the main office. Now, South Portland has taken the same tack, putting a similar contract out to bid.

The systems were planned in both districts, officials say, but gained added momentum following the Newtown tragedy. The plan in South Portland is to install a buzzer system, along with audiovisual equipment office staff can use to interact with visitors, at all five elementary schools and at the front entrance of the high school. The middle schools already have such security. Dyer Elementary will require electrical systems work to accommodate the new equipment. Superintendent Suzanne Godin said last week that bids are due back later this month and that the new security measures should be in place by “late winter or early spring.” Godin said money for the upgrades (expected to ring in around $40,000) will comes from unspent money in a reserve account created the last time the elementary schools were renovated.

Cape Elizabeth Superintendent Meredith Nadeau has said the door upgrades in her district should be installed over February vacation. No cost estimate has been released, but Nadeau said that even after a $200,000 state subsidy curtailment announced last month, savings on fuel and insurance contracts should leave enough room to reallocated funds from the department’s operating budget.