Thursday, October 1, 2026
More than a year after his inauguration in July 2011, Rockville Centre Mayor Francis Murray said that he believes he has achieved many of the goals he set for himself and kept his campaign promises.
In an exclusive interview with the Rockville Centre Herald, Murray listed his administration’s achievements and announced new objectives for his second year in office.
Promises fulfilled
One of the main platform tenets on which Murray ran for office in 2011 was a reevaluation of parking in the village, and the revitalization of the financial district.
“The first night of our first meeting — when I got sworn in — we stopped giving tickets out in our downtown immediately after 6 p.m.,” Murray recalled. “It revitalized our downtown. It was an initiative… to bring back business and a better feeling to our storeowners and our residents and people who visit Rockville Centre. And you know what? It worked.”
According to the mayor, in July 2011, the store occupancy rate in the downtown area was at 90 percent filled, but the statistic has risen to nearly 96 percent since that time.
The village is targeting three large empty properties to return to occupancy, the mayor said, including the RKO Twin Theatre and the building where Harmon Drugs used to be.
Murray described the new flower plantings and hanging baskets, initiatives with owners to keep their properties clean and a new gum-cleaner machine purchased by the village as efforts taken to rejuvenate the downtown area.
“Speaking of the downtown, that feeling has really carried on to our business land owners,” Murray said. “People are opening up new businesses, but at the same time people are putting money into their buildings.”
Village restoration
Another campaign promise of which the Mayor has followed through is his hiring of two part-time grant writers, whose efforts have lead to a number of improvements and improvements, including the planned Maple Avenue renovations.
“The results are coming in,” Murray said, acknowledging grants received for the fire department, police department and court system, among others. “I have about ten more grants out there for streets in our downtown and in our residential area.”
The Maple Avenue reconstruction, which will include new of electric conduits, water main upgrades and manhole replacements as well as a streetscape update, will be paid for through a $1.2 million grant helped secured by U.S. Rep. Carolyn McCarthy.
The mayor also addressed the upcoming renovations to the fields in Rockville Centre, including the re-sodding and sprinkler system installment at Tighe Field that was helped paid for when the village’s soccer community fundraised $50,000. The mayor added that he believed moving the Parks and Recreations department under the scope of Public Works has made the upkeep of the fields more efficient.
When the mayor took office, half of the playground at the Recreation Center was shut down because it was unsafe. When the administration was told that the playground was in need of repair, the mayor said, bids were immediately secured and the new playground was just opened Monday, Sept. 17.
Murray said that his new Village Administrator Keith Spadaro has been indispensable to achieving many of the goals he has set. Spadaro, a former New York City police inspector, took the position in February after Frank Quigley was removed the previous October.
Cordial relations
One of Murray’s objectives during his first year, he said, was to repair relations between the village, the school district and the firefighters. Much of the tension between the three entities was centered on the lapsed Fireman’s Field deal. A new agreement for the deal was decided on Sept. 13 and construction was set to begin in October to provide an additional 50 spots of parking for staff and visitors.
“The relationship was strained,” the mayor said. “You know what? We’re all one village. We’re all residents here and we’re all one.”
The current administration has also made efforts to solidify the village’s relationship with Molloy College through the renovation of Klein Field, with $1.6 million coming from the college to pay for the work. The softball field will meet NCAA Division I standards, the mayor said, and the college will have access to the fields 18-20 percent of the time.
“We work together,” Murray said. “[President of Molloy College] Dr. Drew Bogner and I — we see eye to eye. They want to be a part of this community and I think they are a wonderful part of the community already.”
Work to do
While Murray said that he was proud of the work he has done since taking office, he noted that there were still goals he was working to achieve.
The mayor has been a staunch opponent of the Nassau County’s “headquarters tax,” which requires the village to pay the services provided by the Nassau County Police Department, despite a variety of recent service cuts. Despite his meetings with county and NCPD leaders, the tax remains enforced in full.
“I understand we do get some services from the Nassau County Police Department,” Murray said. “However, I think it’s grossly overpaid and I’m fighting the county for the residents to get some of that money back.”
The mayor also discussed his feelings about the Roxen Road assault. He said that mainly that though he felt and hoped it was an isolated incident, he has taken a number of steps to prevent a similar occurrence, through meetings with the leaders of sports groups and schools, as well as the implementation of a neighborhood watch.
Another area in which Murray sees potential for savings is in the electric department. According to the mayor, the village is close to obtaining the services of a company that would examine all buildings owned by the village. The company would then determine how money could be saved through various methods.
“I always say this: I’m only here for one reason and one reason only,” Murray said. “I put many, many hours into this job and that is to help the people of Rockville Centre and make it a better place to live, if I can.”
