Drivers frustrated by the long-term Ohio Drive road closure along D.C.’s Southwest waterfront should see a little bit of relief with the opening of a new access road Monday.

Since June, a small section of Ohio Drive, along the Potomac River, has been closed off for work on the Potomac River Tunnel Project. DC Water is opening a new access street, West Potomac Park Drive, that will connect Independence Avenue and Ohio Drive.

The three-lane road has two lanes headed north and a single southbound lane.

“As we work to improve water quality and reduce sewer overflow in the Potomac River, we also recognize the importance of maintaining access for traffic and the millions who visit West Potomac Park each year,” said DC Water CEO and General Manager David L. Gadis.

“This road will help minimize the impact on our community while we embark on this bold project to safeguard this vital water resource for our region,” Gadis said in a news release.

West Potomac Drive will also have a shared bike and pedestrian path and a new traffic light at the intersection of Independence Avenue. The road will also include new metered parking spaces.

It will open in two phases: On Nov. 18, the road will be restricted to right turns only. Beginning Nov. 25, the traffic signal will be “fully operational, and the intersection and road will be open for all vehicular and pedestrian traffic from Independence Ave SW.,” DC Water said.

The Potomac River Tunnel project is scheduled to be completed in 2030. At that time, Ohio Drive will be restored, and West Potomac Park Drive will be closed and turned back into park space.

The tunnel project is constructing a huge tunnel to catch sewer overflow that would normally flow into the Potomac River and instead carry it to the Blue Plains wastewater treatment facility.

In September 2023, crews completed work on the Northeast Boundary tunnel, a 5-mile underground tunnel in Northeast that aims to reduce sewer overflow into the Anacostia River.

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Ah, your golden years — time to kick back and enjoy. But therein lies the question: Where?

U.S. News & World Report has developed a list cataloging the best places to retire in 2025. And there are some sweet spots to consider … including the nation’s capital.

U.S. News’ Dawn Bradbury told WTOP, “Big cities are great places to retire. Speaking anecdotally, you have great services. There’s usually good walkability, good transportation.”

Affordability is definitely a concern, but happiness is important as well.

“Washington, in particular, did well because of its high scores in happiness, access to quality health care and its job market,” Bradbury said.

“Job market is important for retirees, because not everyone is ready to completely leave the workforce.”

Overall, D.C. did not make it into the Top 10 — it’s at No. 12 — but it did land at No. 3 for well-being “according to share cares community well-being index out of 150 cities. That’s pretty good,” Bradbury said.

A final note of good cheer?

“There’s always something to do in Washington,” Bradbury said.

As far as other notable spots, Virginia Beach scored high.

“It ranked number eight out of 150 cities for happiness. Its affordability is kind of middle of the road, and desirability, very high desirability, a good job market. So I think we’re finding a theme here,” Bradbury told WTOP.

U.S. News’ full report is online.

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The Washington Nationals are heading into the offseason after a promising campaign in 2024, in which they saw a lot of development even as they only won 71 games for the second straight season.

This winter figures to be an interesting one for the Nationals. They have the ability to spend and have a young core of talent, which could make Washington a desirable destination for free agents once again. 

Washington’s win total figures to take a nice jump in 2025 if it can add some veterans, along with the improvement of its young core. The everyday lineup for the Nationals gets most of the attention with top young prospects in Dylan Crews and James Wood. However, they have some young talent in their starting rotation as well. 

Since the pitching rotation is fairly young, there was inconsistency throughout last year. One pitcher who has shown some signs of elite potential has been MacKenzie Gore. 

The talented southpaw came over as part of the Juan Soto trade and has pitched well so far for the Nationals. Recently, Bobby Blanco of MASN Sports wrote about Gore’s potential to be a Cy Young candidate in the future. 

From his perspective, the way that Gore finished the season allowed him to put up some of the best numbers of any pitcher on the roster.

“..he posted a 1.55 ERA and 0.910 WHIP over his final seven starts. When it was all said and done, he had the best ERA by any Nationals pitcher who made at least 20 starts, and the most strikeouts since 2019. If Gore can put his eclectic stuff together for a full season, he has the potential to be the Nats’ best pitcher since Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg.”

In September, the 25-year-old totaled a 2-1 record and 1.26 ERA in five starts. A month isn’t a small sample size, and Gore clearly has some elite potential. Considering he is still a young pitcher, becoming more consistent is a priority. 

While the summer months were tough for the southpaw, he shined to start and end the season. As the franchise heads into 2025, he should build upon how he ended last year. 

Competing for a Cy Young might still be a few years away, but he has shown glimpses that he can be an elite pitcher.