Giving the Turnpike a run for its money, the Garden State Parkway is immortalizing several notable New Jersey residents by naming rest stops after them. Per NorthJersey.com, some of the marquee names are Jon Bon Jovi, Whitney Houston, and Old Blue Eyes himself, Frank Sinatra.
Other honorees include James Gandolfini, Toni Morrison, and Judy Blume. For residents wondering why Bruce Springsteen didn’t make the cut, it turns out the Boss actually turned down the opportunity. “Bruce Springsteen respectfully declined to have a service area named after him,” said New Jersey Hall of Fame spokeswoman Natasha Alagarasan.
In addition to being christened after the stars, the rest stops will each feature a display curated by the New Jersey Hall of Fame. According to NJ.com, this will include exhibits with artifacts, a video monitor with vignettes on the inductees, and posters designed by New Jersey architect Michael Graves.
The project is part of Gov. Phil Murphy’s plan to expand the Hall of Fame, which has inducted more than 180 people since 2008 but doesn’t have a single physical location. Instead, the rest areas will add to the number of exhibits and posters throughout the state honoring inductees. See the full list of names and corresponding rest areas below:
Montvale: James Gandolfini
Brookdale North: Larry Doby
Brookdale South: Connie Chung
Vauxhall: Whitney Houston
Cheesequake: Jon Bon Jovi
Monmouth: Judy Blume
Forked River: Celia Cruz
Atlantic: Frank Sinatra
Ocean View: Toni Morrison
