FARMINGTON – Selectmen voted 4-1 Tuesday to cover an overdraft for the Walton’s Mill Dam repair with money from the undesignated fund.

While the town had authorized spending $32,000, at least another $17,000 is needed to cover expenses, Town Manager Richard Davis told the board.

The board was authorized at town meeting to spend up to $20,000 on overdraft items, Davis said.

While most of the selectmen were comfortable using the fund to pay the overdraft, Selectman Dennis Pike wanted the item brought before a town meeting or even special town meeting because the amount was in excess of what had been voted on for the project.

Selectman Stephan Bunker said he was comfortable using the money because the extra expense was unavoidable.

Expenses rose when contractors started to erect a retaining wall and found it was standing on sawdust, forcing construction of a solid base. A pump was also rented to keep water out of the area.

“It’s unfortunate. We don’t like to have overdrafts, but there were a lot of unknowns,” Davis said.

In other business, the board accepted a bid of $19,300 from RHR Smith & Co. of Buxton for a financial audit of town finances for 2007, 2008 and 2009.

The board approved the hiring of Michael Adcock and Kyle Ellis as full-time patrolmen for the Farmington Police Department.

Selectmen also approved hiring a University of Maine at Farmington sophomore, Stephen Almquist, and Michael Melville as probationary firefighters. Melville had served with the Farmington department in the 1990s before moving to Temple where he also served as a firefighter. He has now moved back to Farmington, Fire Chief Terry Bell said.

Gary Dorr was also approved by the board for a part-time sidewalk plow operator/plow truck driver position, and Timothy Roy as a Teen Center supervisor.