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The agency this week sued Jersey Boardwalk Pizza in New Jersey
federal court, saying its logo "directly copied and appropriated"
that of the Garden State Parkway. The restaurant's merchandise and
fact that pizzas are sold in the turnpike's service areas could
confuse consumers, it said.
"There’s no way someone is going to mistake my logo for that of the
parkway - we’re 1,300 miles away," said Paul DiMatteo, co-owner of
the Tavernier, Florida, restaurant, which also has a franchise in
Florida City.
"We’re a pizza shop, they’re the road department," he said. "It’s
two completely different identities."
Both logos are circular, yellow-and-green, with a rendering of the
state in the middle. In the shop's design, "Jersey Boardwalk Pizza"
replaces "Garden State Parkway," with the addition of "Subs.
Cheesesteaks. Pasta."
"They’re similar logos, but that’s not the issue," the pizzeria's
attorney JoyAnn Kenny said. "They’re not identical. So the focus is
on whether there would be a likelihood of confusion."
After the turnpike authority began sending it cease-and-desist
letters in April, the restaurant applied to register its logo with
the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, according to the complaint.
The agency is asking the court to force the pizzeria to stop using
the logo, hand over the profits derived from it, and other
unspecified damages.
DiMatteo said he did not understand why the agency was targeting him
when there were many other examples of the logo’s use, noting an
Internet search turned up images of various businesses, sports teams
and other groups with similar logo designs.
"You’re supposed to be proud of where you came from," said DiMatteo,
who grew up in New Jersey. "That’s all we’re doing, we’re just
saying we’re a Jersey pizzeria."
Attorneys for the authority could not be reached for comment.
The case is New Jersey Turnpike Authority v. Jersey Boardwalk
Franchising Co, Inc, Jersey Boardwalk Pizza Corp, and Boardwalk
Pizza, Inc, No. 14-cv-04589.
(Reporting By Andrew Chung; Editing by Ted Botha and Tom Brown)
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