One of Queens’ most storied neighborhood landmarks is welcoming everyone back. Lost Battalion Hall Recreation Center, the red-brick Tudor-style center on Queens Boulevard in Rego Park, has reopened following a $10.5 million capital renovation by NYC Parks — and it is celebrating with a full season of free and low-cost programs for all ages.
First dedicated in 1939, Lost Battalion Hall honors the famous “Lost Battalion” of World War I’s 77th Division, and its Great Hall — with its soaring ceiling, polished wood floors and vintage light fixtures — has hosted generations of dances, sports leagues, scout troops and neighborhood gatherings. The renewal refreshes the beloved building and grounds for its next chapter.
The reopening lineup is packed: free computer classes for seniors, after-school programming and adult sports leagues are now running, and free youth sports classes — basketball, volleyball, soccer and pickleball — begin the week of October 26, with registration available through the center’s recreation staff. Everyone ages 18 and older is asked to bring a photo ID; a recreation center membership is required for many activities, and NYC Parks offers reduced-rate memberships for seniors, veterans, people with disabilities and young adults ages 18 to 24.
Whether you come for a youth clinic, a senior tech class or simply to step inside a lovingly restored piece of Queens history, Lost Battalion Hall is once again what it has always been: a beautiful place for the neighborhood to gather.
Photo: Jim Henderson via Wikimedia Commons
