Expectations for which school closure had been mixed in the community, although most expected nearby Sequoia High School or Woodside High School because the centrally-located lands were likely more valuable. Reynolds later explained that the considerable distance between East Palo Alto and San Carlos; the school's location on the top of a steep hill that made access difficult; and the less-frequent usage of school grounds by the community compared to other schools contributed to the decision. Other school trustees at the time also noted that the city of Belmont, home to Carlmont High School, had placed a moratorium that prevented the district from putting the land on the market, and that Sequoia, as the founding school of the district, was too historic to close.
