When Ken Murphy retired as general counsel of National Service Industries and then its spinoff Acuity Brands and moved to Franklin, North Carolina, he didn't expect to start another career on the edge of the Appalachian Trail. But Murphy and two other attorneys from Atlanta who moved to the Franklin area, former DeKalb County District Attorney J. Tom Morgan and retired King & Spalding attorney Jess Austin, have opened Lazy Hiker Brewing Co., a craft beer brewery in downtown Franklin. The three co-founders formed the Lazy Hiker as an LLC with "community orientation" as the overall concept. They wanted to involve LLC members as a group of common-minded individuals who understood and believed in the "double bottom line" objectives: a successful business with a reasonable financial return over time to all members, and a positive impact on the community. Currently the LLC has 33 investors, and many are "hands on" in the business helping out in the taproom and brew house. The brew house where the beer is made is run by head brewer Graham Norris and assistant brewer Chuck Reissig. The beer is produced on a two-vessel, 15-barrel system. The total production time can be as long as four weeks, depending on the particular beer. While waiting, the brewery staff is, according to The Lazy Hiker's website, "Always cleaning. Checking on the beer and cleaning—something, anything, everything!" The current beer lineup includes three beers that were brewed either in collaboration with nonprofits in the community or to celebrate events that were hosted by nonprofits: Need More Ale (Mainspring Conservation Trust), Red Fez (Greenville Shriners Hospital) and Hops for Hunger (Manna Food Bank). The Lazy Hiker beers are now sold in stores in North Carolina and northeast Georgia, and the draft beer is sold in kegs in many restaurants and bars in the area. The taproom and outside music venue along with the brew house was once the city hall and fire station for the city of Franklin. The taproom is housed in the fire station, and the brew house was the vehicle service building for the city. The music venue was where they stored sand and gravel for the city. Many of the materials used in the restoration of the taproom were sourced locally. The taproom and outside music venue are kid- and pet-friendly. The outside music venue brings in bands from all over the Southeast. This weekend, Aug. 17-18, the Lazy Hiker will host a two-day music festival. On Friday, the headline band will be The Melody Trucks Band; Melody is the daughter of Butch Trucks, the drummer for the Allman Brothers Band. On Saturday, they will celebrate the anniversary of the total eclipse with The Company Stores, a self described "Hill Hop" band that will present their version of Pink Floyd's album "Dark Side of the Moon," as well as their original music. Admission is free.