In the not-too-distant future, Jon Bon Jovi will be able to stop on the Garden State Parkway at his very own rest stop. The rock star and New Jersey native is among nine New Jersey Hall of Fame inductees—including Whitney Houston and James Gandolfini—whose names will soon grace the Parkway’s service areas.
Under a program announced Tuesday by Governor Phil Murphy, the Cheesequake Rest Area will become the Jon Bon Jovi Service Area. Vauxhall will be renamed for Houston; Montvale will be Gandolfini’s turf.
The naming program is part of a larger statewide initiative to showcase the contributions of New Jersey heroes. Garden State Parkway service area parking lots will soon welcome visitors with banners of NJ Hall of Fame inductees, and each service area will contain inductee-related exhibits, including posters designed by renowned New Jersey architect Michael Graves and video monitors showcasing more than 200 inductees and their acceptance speeches.
“This is about putting New Jersey greatness on full display,” Murphy said in a statement.
The service areas will be “renamed in phases,” according to a Hall of Fame spokesperson. The first to be renamed will be the Monmouth and Atlantic service areas in October and November. The New Jersey Turnpike has long had service areas named for famous New Jerseyans.
The nine Garden State Parkway rest areas will be renamed as follows:
- Montvale: James Gandolfini Service Area
- Brookdale North: Larry Doby Service Area
- Brookdale South: Connie Chung Service Area
- Vauxhall: Whitney Houston Service Area
- Cheesequake: Jon Bon Jovi Service Area
- Monmouth: Judy Blume Service Area
- Forked River: Celia Cruz Service Area
- Atlantic: Frank Sinatra Service Area
- Ocean View: Toni Morrison Service Area