Portola / Palega Playground & Rec

My sisters told me about this park. It’s right next to my house which i never knew it existed once you have a kid you want to know all the parks. So we came here it’s not bad very crowded on the weekends and during the weekdays around 3pm thats when the children get off school. But you don’t have to wait that long to get on the swings. It’s very clean here so i like that, just wish they had more shades in the playing structure when its gets hot here the sun beams on the playing structure. Overall i enjoy taking my baby here very convenient for me.

Shady park. Bunch of ghetto hood rats flocking to this park because their side of the district is too poor to built a park like this so their ghetto ass have to come over here and ruined the Portola neighborhood and the safety of it. Someone I knew was playing basketball at the court with a bunch of his friends and these black men came up to them and ask if they can play only to find out they were just pretending to be interested. The black men waited for the right moment and two of them had guns out. The person that I was acquaintances with and the rest of his friend got robbed of their cellphones, wallets, even jackets! How desperate are these hoodrats?! And now I see a lot of police cars, like 3 regular cars and 4 police vans circling around the park. To some people having the polices patrolling = feeling safe but if you think about it, why are they REALLY there for? Especially with the amount of police cars there. Whoever had the idea of rebuilding this park didn’t think far enough because this park has become the attraction for the bayview hunters point and 3^rd street hoodrats to come here in the morning til night time selling drugs and trying to fuck with people in this neighborhood. If you think you’re doing the neighborhood a favor, think again and look around you. A beautiful park like this will only attract the wrong people.
**Proceed with caution during the night time.**

Great Recreation center that’s open to the public. The facilities are relatively new as the place was remodeled in 2008 and is the best center available I know of in the South San Francisco area.
I primarily use the center for the basketball courts which are the best free indoor courts in the city. There’s one full sized court and two shorter courts that generally are used instead of the full court which can accommodate a full 5 on 5 on both courts. Competition is average with a few good ballers. Expect to wait 10 — 15 minutes to get on your first game as hours for the basketball courts are shared with other activities such as Zumba.

Fun park, playground area isn’t very big though. And the staff are really nice. Just don’t ever leave your backpacks on the bench– even indoors. Guy came in and tried to chat with us, and then grabbed my friends phone and ran. We chased him down to fresh N Easy, with 2 nice staff running with us and stopped him. Long story, but great staff.

They jus remodeled the entire park and gym gerat spot but no one ever picks up the phones.
I give it a 1 start cause this is a park who cares! Except the rating system.
Hours of operation still unknown.

This place is truly a diamond in the rough. It’s a result of $ 18 to $ 20 million of funds used to renovate & improve a facility that hopes to keep kids & families healthy, safe & outta trouble.
Pros:
1. Brand new building w/​great features!
2. Free space for sports & dynamic coaches & staff.
3. Free gym classes especially Zumba! See their web site for more details but for now there are officially 2 Zumba classes with the addition of one more & a possible yoga class.
Cons:
1. The Tuesday Zumba classes are overcrowded & folks bring their kids as they can’t access daycare or a nanny. I could barely move to dance & to one last week. One lady hit my face & needs to get an updated optometry prescription.
2. Since Portola is mostly a working class area, don’t expect much etiquette or class from some users. Some folks were complaining about one of the Zumba instructors’ style since her version is more diverse with French & Arabic/​Persian & even African tunes yet they only know Latin Zumba. Had they done their research, Zumba is roughly 60 to 70% Latin tunes & each instructor adds their own flair to it. Also the diverse instructor goes out of her way to go there. She was a computer programmer & is gonna be in the legal field soon. Also «Beggars can’t be choosers»! So if they want to do their preferred Zumba then they’ll spend at least $ 10 for another place, yet that’s their 1 hr rate.
3. Around the area are some questionable folks loitering… I wouldn’t walk around with my phone or any electronic device in plain view. I suggest to act & look like a pauper especially if walking or taking Muni.
Overall the faculty & it’s staff are fab with good users but sadly there are some picky poor people & sketchy folks. Just be cautious & do your best.

This Center is gorgeous. We came here for a basketball tournament. Probably one of the nicest remodeled parks in the city… which we lived closer to it.

If you haven’t been to Palega Rec Center at Portola Park lately, you need to go. The building has been totally remodeled and an addition added. Beautiful artwork is highlighted by the building’s design and all of the outdoor space has been reworked. It’s a gem.

Newly remodeled! It’s so nice now. I wish I was a kid again! They have a super long seasaw that fits multiple kids, a spinning tower, rock climbing, indoor ping ping, basketball courts. Had an awesome time there with my 3 year old nephew when he was visiting last month.

When we were kids in middle school, this was our go to spot after school to hang out and or fight! What can I say, recreational parks are there for everyone! Basketball gym, basketball court outside, tennis court, baseball field, open field for football and a playground for your kids to run around and enjoy themselves.

Growing up in the neighborhood I’ve been to this park a number of times. With a few minor upgrades to the playground for kids (with a rubber floor instead of dog urine filled sand) and cheaply upgraded basketball and tennis courts. All we needed now was a level open soccer/​football field. I remember spraining my ankle too many times while playing football on thanksgiving. Please city! Level out the field!
Btw…It appears they are under construction. New review to come.

Palega park is my life. Well, kind of. I practically grew up here. I remember when the play structure was made of wood and the slides were metal. I’m glad they changed it up and made it more child friendly.
The open field isn’t that great. Sure, it’s good for baseball, and having your dog run around, but it’s not that great if you just wanna lay down and enjoy the sun. It needs a bit more work.
The tennis courts are fun to play on, though I hate when people play soccer on them late at night cause the light barely reaches the field.
The open gym is the best place to be, though. Besides all the people trying to steal your belongings, the atmosphere is great. Everyone is looking for pickup games left and right. If you’re shooting around by yourself, don’t be surprised if someone asks you to join their team.

I would give this place 4 stars if it weren’t so ghetto.
I spent countless hours at this playground as a kid playing tag and swings with friends.
I spent countless hours playing ping pong as a teenager here.
Also, I spent and is still spending countless hours playing basketball here. This place is close to where i live, so i come here with my friends all the time to play ball. The basketball courts are Ok, they need to wax it so we don’t slip so much. I used to come here 3 times a week, the courts are always full with people. I love competing against others and getting a great workout out of it. Every time i come, i spent at least 3 hours here. One time, i spent like 7 hours here because i love basketball that much and the competition here was awesome that day.
The only bad thing about this place is that it is in a very ghetto neighborhood and it is very dangerous. I remembered some dude came up to my friends and I and tried to asked us for money, but we just said we don’t have any and walked away. Also, There is always people here to jack you so be careful. When you are inside playing basketball, you have to watch out for your backpack and belongings because people steals them!!! Sucks, i know. I lost two t-​shirts here because i left it on the bleachers and when i came back for it, it was gone. Just the other day, i was playing basketball with my friend, and after 30 minutes or so, i realized that my ball was gone. Someone STOLE it… so sad… now i have to get a new ball. but it won’t stop me from coming here because i love basketball.

This place is like my second home. Been here ever since I was a little kid! I used to come here EVERY Wednesdays and Fridays back in high school to play basketball, and I still do! There’s always friendly competition in the air and that’s why I love this place. Since it’s the only park with a indoor gym around this neighborhood, so everyone that lives around here comes here.
Some of the people that come here are really friendly and some are just looking for trouble. They have a big grass field which I don’t really trust playing around and small playground which isn’t big enough for the amount of kids that come here often. The government needs to put more money into this place, and not other empty playgrounds.
People always getting their stuff stolen here. You should NEVER leave your belonging in the bleachers, bring it with you where ever you go even if it’s across the gym. If you bring you’re own ball make sure you put it in a safe place or with your friend, there is no guarantees anything is ever safe at this park. People that work here aren’t friendly, it’s like they don’t even want to be there. But they’re cool because they’re working there to keep the indoor gym open and supervise the area, which they do a bad job of.

I shed a lot of sweat and some hard fought basketball games here. This review is solely based on the basketball gym itself. The gym contains about 6 nets, about every year they polish the courts to maintain its stability and freshness. Growing up I wasn’t really much of a basketball player, but had many friends that did play and soon started playing it regularly. Many ballplayers come down here, pretty good competition. The staff that works there are pretty friendly, if you did not bring a basketball or want to play volleyball instead (LOL VOLLEYBALL j/​k), you can trade in your keys for it. What keeps it from getting a 5, is the occasional thieves that lurk around palega’s tiny cracks, the ones that steal your money in your jeans, or your own basketball magically goes away while your playing a full court game

Great playground, tennis courts, gym and softball fields… in the middle of Portola? Portola never gets anything! We’re like the forgotten, least known district in SF, so it’s nice to have a place like Palega right in our backyard.
My husband used to play basketball at the Palega gym every Saturday until the team moved. And it was also my workout spot for many years. There are always kids playing (on the field or on the playground), people walking their dogs or playing frisbee with them, or old folks practicing tai-​chi — even at the crack of dawn.
Palega, you’re near and dear to my heart and my childhood :)

I’ve come to this park plenty of times, majority of my lifetime was during middle school and a few times during high school. It’s probably the closest park to me besides John McLaren and St. Mary’s. It’s decent, they have outside basketball courts, a large field for kickball/​baseball/​softball, playground structure, some swings and a few tables to eat lunch and benches to sit. They also have a small recreation building with different rooms for activities and the larger room where the basketball court resides.
My boyfriend and his friends always play ball in the indoor court. It’s usually packed with middle schoolers (mostly MLK students) and neighborhood kids.

They need to mop the dusty gym floors more often, but other than that, it’s a nice park with tennis courts, both indoor/​outdoor bball courts, playground for kids and two baseball diamonds.
Good pick up games but can be dead at times

I’ve lived up the street from this park majority of my life and remember when the playground used to be made of wood and rusty metal. I haven’t set foot in the park for years but driving past it, I see the playground has stepped it up a bit. Not sure about the quality of the field now, plus the little path that goes around the gym and through the playground, or the gym for that matter. For years I’ve always said that it really needs to be cleaner. The times that I’ve walked the perimeter of it, I would feel itchy and that is not cool. My dad always told me there’s just one groundskeeper who can never make progress with his work, because people are always trashing the place. It can be a great park if people helped to take care of it, like picking up after their dogs.
IT COULD ALSO USE MORE TREES.

This park is okay. There’s a playground, tennis courts, and basketball courts. The playground is pretty big. I remember coming here once for a water balloon fight back in middle school. it was pretty fun :)