Tim Benyo and Thomas Whitehead Jr. started making beer in Benyo’s garage around a decade ago with a dream of one day running their own business.

That dream became one step closer to reality Thursday night when Jim Thorpe borough’s zoning hearing board granted the duo conditional special exception approval to open a small brewery and taproom in a residential zoning district at 204 Center St.

“It’s going to be called Hairy Guys Brewing and we’re realistically shooting for a late May/early June opening,” Whitehead said following the zoning hearing. “We’re really excited. It’s going to be a really small system, almost something you would see in someone’s basement or garage. Basically, it’s like we’re creating a man cave with a license.”

Benyo and Whitehead are leasing space in an 1800s Victorian house owned by Kevin Ruch next to Union Publick House. While they have been painting and putting floors in, most of the original structure was in good shape.

“It was vacant for a while, so there was some plaster work and things like that, but it’s just a really cool building,” Benyo said. “The ceilings are really high and it just gives a really neat feel when you’re in there.”

With 12 taps and seating for no more than 20, the duo said they plan to stay true to their intent to be a quaint little neighborhood place to grab a beer.

“It’s our intention to be very non-intrusive and keep the neighbors happy,” Benyo said.

The drink menu will feature a little bit of something for everyone with varying styles of beer available.

“We’ll have IPAs, pilsners, stouts and porters,” Whitehead said. “The hope is to get into some of the more exotic stuff too but we can’t reveal a lot of that just yet. There will definitely be some experimenting going on.”

Several neighbors of the proposed brewery/taproom attended Thursday’s hearing and expressed their excitement for the new business.

“I’ve had some very nice conversations with Tim and Tom and they’ve been great listeners,” Sarah Johnson told the zoning hearing board. “It’s a really great part of Jim Thorpe and I think this will just add to it. Union Publick House is one of my favorite restaurants and I see this as a really nice extension of that.”