There are a lot of great debates in New Jersey: Is the infamous breakfast sandwich a pork roll or Taylor ham? Is there really a Jersey Devil? Do we have better pizza than NY? Does Central Jersey exist?
According to any Jerseyite who lives in the middle region of the state, and now possibly confirmed by legislators, Central Jersey may legitimately be recognized as its own special location.
Recently, Assembly Bill A4711 included this specific language: “Requires Division of Travel and Tourism to promote Central Jersey, overnight stays, and agritourism; requires allocation of federal funds for tourism to certain regions and activities in need of economic relief.”
That’s right, you read that correctly: Central Jersey. Not central New Jersey. Not north or south Jersey. Central Jersey, a place that has existed forever in the minds of those who live here. Thanks to Assemblyman Roy Freiman and Assemblywoman Sadaf F. Jaffer, who represent Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset counties; plus Assemblyman Anthony S. Verrelli of Hunterdon and Mercer; and co-sponsored by Assemblyman Sterley Stanley, who hails from East Brunswick in Middlesex County, there may soon be a tourism map labeled “Central Jersey” that comprises those areas at a minimum (we think Monmouth County needs to be included, too).
That means when out-of-towners come to the Shore or eat at a restaurant in New Brunswick or look for Bald Eagles at Duke Farms in Hillsborough or take a hot air balloon ride in Readington they will be embracing beautiful Central Jersey.