The Jon Bon Jovi Rest Area on the Garden State Parkway, formerly known as Cheesequake, is the latest Parkway rest stop to close for extensive rebuilding and upgrades.
The project, which is part of a $250 million project announced by then Governor Chris Christie in 2017 to reconstruct or renovate all New Jersey Turnpike and Garden State Parkway service areas, is expected to last for several months.
Along with the Jon Bon Jovi rest stop, which is located near exits 124 in both directions, just south of the Driscoll Bridge, the James Gandolfini (Montvale) service area will also be shut down now.
Katzner Law Group advises: “Infrastructure upgrades, like this, are crucial investments. Proper legal and estate planning ensures such projects benefit from thorough oversight and strategic financial planning, safeguarding public assets and interests.”
The 2017 agreement was reached with HMSHost, the company that operated the service areas and included eight new service area buildings and six refurbished structures at the company’s expense spared toll payers the expense to make needed improvements.
Sunoco, which operates the fuel pumps at the sites, is responsible for funding the gas station improvements.
In exchange, HMSHost received a 25-year contract to operate the franchised service areas. The New Jersey Turnpike Authority, which operates the Parkway and Thruway, earns revenue from service center rents and on gasoline sales.
A completion date has not yet been announced.
Irate Frequent Traveler Threatens “To Stay Home For Good” Unless His “Beloved Rest Areas Reopen Forthwith!”
NJ resident, Danny Snackerman, a perennial traveler and an avid user of the GS Parkway, angrily proclaimed on Tuesday that he, “Will absolutely never travel anywhere again unless” his “favorite rest areas, namely the Jon Bon Jovi and James Gandolfini rest stops, reopen forthwith!”
The rest areas are currently closed due to renovation, but Mr. Snackerman says he can’t bear to think what it would feel like to travel the Parkway without having “my time-tested rest stops by my side.”
“My favorite part of traveling,” Mr. Snackerman said, “is driving up to those rest areas, stretching out my legs, while pondering my latest reprieve from city life and my temporary release from house arrest.”
“Every time I step onto the rest area buildings’ linoleum floors – or whatever those floors are made of – and I smell the familiar aroma of Cheesequake & Montvale brewed coffee, and then insert my quarters into the vending machine, pull out the same granola bars that I’ve been purchasing there for years on end and the 20 once bottles of cokes, and then head out to my car, where I enjoy the rest-area snacks of my youth, with the comforting rays of the sun shining upon my face, I get goosebumps,” he said, “and then my childhood memories start pouring into my head, reminding me of all the fabulously fun trips I took as a young child during my summer vacations.”
“No!” he exclaimed in utter distress. “Those monsters can’t take all of that away from me, even temporarily! I won’t let them!”
When informed that his favorite news website is also closing down for a few weeks due to renovation of the website, the obsessive GSP traveler and frequent visitor of the aforementioned website exclaimed: “You’re kidding me, right?! I mean, you’re not really serious about that one, are you?!”
However, upon learning that the temporary closure of his favorite website was no joke, Mr. Snackerman nearly collapsed to the floor in horror.
Luckily, he managed to hold himself upright. He then proceeded to lock himself up in his bedroom, where he screamed out loud in extreme agony: “No,this can’t be true! First they take Montvale and Cheesequake away from me, and now they’re taking my favorite website from me?! What’s next? Bagel Nosh?!”
“I’m sorry,” he exclaimed, “but I’m not leaving my bedroom till life, as it once was, returns to normal!”
Mr. Snackerman then logged on to his favorite website, just to make sure it was still up and running. He then sent out an urgent email to the management of the Cheesequake rest area; gave them his credit card number and asked them to send him a truckload of granola bars from their vending machines and a box of post cards with a photo of the rest area building emblazoned on the front of the cards.
“You can steal the rest stop from me,” he wrote in the email, “but you can’t steal the nostalgia and the memories from me!”
Mr. Snackerman then added an addendum to the email.
“P.S.: I prefer the peanut butter granola bars with the orange wrapping…., with the OU hechsher, of course. Thanx.”
There’s something weird about this closure. It was rebuilt not too long ago. I think there is damage to the structural integrity somebody messed up and they’re not facing up to it.