Brandon has one of the dozen or so designated downtowns in Vermont and holds up the northern end of the region’s Route 7 corridor. Tropical Storm Irene rocked Brandon’s core and ripped through Route 7 in 2011. A gigantic culvert buried beneath Route 7 to divert high-volume waters under the street and away from the adorable downtown was ranked as the number one project to mitigate future risk. The project flew from idea to installation in just under six years. Way to go, Brandon!