In life and business, reputation is everything. For the village of Fredonia, when it comes to the water supply, there is only one real perception: unreliability.

That, ultimately, is what caused the boil-water order after flawed testing last week. Even though village leaders have every right to be upset over the events, there’s a knee-jerk reason to issue the alert as boil-water orders have become far too common for the community.

Last week’s saga started Sept. 19, when Chautauqua County initially reported that the village “received (test) results of two failing bacteria samples in the distribution system; one containing E. coli.”

However, the county backtracked on the E. coli report a day later. “A laboratory reporting error was discovered and the laboratory later confirmed that two locations contained total coliform but neither location contained E. coli bacteria,” the Chautauqua County Health Department stated in a press release.

The boil order was lifted Sunday afternoon after the village cleared two tests of the water.

Officials, notably Mayor Michael Ferguson, have every right to criticize and complain about the two-day inconvenience for users. But there is no denying that the village — as is usually the case — has become its own worst enemy.

By standing still for years — and not making improvements to an already outdated treatment facility — decades of trustees elected by residents were unresponsive to the maintenance issues. Earlier this month, a current Village Board decided to move ahead with plans for purchasing water for Dunkirk. That will not happen right away, but a path has been set.

As tough as it may be to stomach, Fredonia has lost so much through the years of water instability. Its population has become smaller. Enrollment at the State University of New York campus has seen major declines. It even lost a major food-processing employer that was the unquestioned biggest user of water and sewer.

Perception is reality — even if faulty testing does happen. All of Western New York is aware of the consistent and notorious troubles facing the village.

When it comes to last week’s boil order, there’s only one place the blame falls: recent history. That’s enough to worry anyone.