Ocean View is the southernmost service plaza on the Garden State Parkway and the only one in Cape May County.
Those infuriating, bright-orange stickers that said “No Fuel,” “No Food” and “No Restroom” are finally gone from the Garden State Parkway in Cape May County.
They greeted motorists while the Parkway’s Ocean View service plaza near Sea Isle City was closed for about three months during a renovation project.
When the service plaza was shut down, literally no gas, no food and no restrooms were available. Stickers were slapped on the Parkway signs approaching Ocean View to let motorists know.
But now, the Ocean View plaza has reopened following renovations that included new fuel pumps, a new canopy for the gas station and a fresher look for the convenience store inside of the building.
The New Jersey Division of Travel and Tourism operates a small visitors center inside the building to distribute marketing materials, maps and guides to motorists who are visiting Cape May County.
Sunoco added new fuel pumps and a new canopy for the gas station as part of the renovations to the Ocean View service plaza.The renovations were done by Sunoco, which has a 25-year agreement with the New Jersey Turnpike Authority to operate the convenience store and fuel pumps.
Although the New Jersey Turnpike Authority operates the Parkway, the money for the renovations at the Ocean View plaza came exclusively from Sunoco, said Tom Feeney, a spokesman for the agency.
Ocean View is the southernmost service plaza on the Parkway and is the only one in Cape May County. The Parkway’s next closest service plaza is about 23 miles north, near Exit 41 in Galloway Township, Atlantic County.
Ocean View’s closure, no doubt, was an inconvenience for Parkway motorists who were looking to buy gas, food or use the restrooms.
For local motorists, the Ocean View plaza also serves as a shortcut that allows them to make a U-turn from the Parkway’s northbound lanes to the southbound side, heading back toward Exit 17 and Sea Isle City. Motorists were still able to make the U-turn during Ocean View’s renovation project.
The New Jersey Division of Travel and Tourism operates a small visitors center inside the building at the Ocean View service plaza.In 2024, the Ocean View service plaza was formally named in honor of movie star Bruce Willis. The New Jersey Turnpike Authority adopted a memorandum of understanding in 2021 allowing the New Jersey Hall of Fame to rename the Parkway’s nine service plazas in honor of Hall of Fame inductees in the arts, entertainment and sports.
Willis, who starred in the “Die Hard” films, is a New Jersey Hall of Fame inductee. His movie career came to an end in 2023 when his family announced that the actor was diagnosed with a form of dementia.
Although Willis was raised in Salem County, N.J., his ties to Cape May County are nebulous. Cape May County officials had urged the New Jersey Turnpike Authority to instead name the Ocean View service plaza in honor of a military veteran or community leader who has deep roots in Cape May County.
The "No Fuel," "No Food" and "No Restroom" stickers have been removed from the Garden State Parkway signs now that the Ocean View rest stop, also known as the Bruce Willis Service Plaza, has reopened.
