WEST CHESTER — Borough employees will now be getting their drinking water straight from the tap or water fountain.

No longer will the borough spend $6,000 per year for five gallon jugs of bottled water.

Borough Manager Mike Perrone made the call to remove two bottles and chillers upstairs and two located downstairs. Borough Manager Mike Perrone made the call to remove two bottles and chillers upstairs and two located downstairs.

“It’s taxpayer money,” Perrone said. “It’s not like there’s not water here.

“We use the same water to make coffee.”

Borough Councilman and Chair of the Financial Committee Bernie Flynn noted that prior to renovations many of the water fountains at Borough Hall were “disgusting.”

With those renovations, sparkling water fountains with chillers were installed. He said that serving bottled water is redundant.

“To fill your water bottle takes a little longer,” Flynn said. “You hold the button and hit the hole.

Borough Councilman Don Braceland asked what ever happened to a pitcher of ice water and paper cups.

“What about all that plastic going into whale bellies?” Braceland asked. “I take my stainless steel water bottle everywhere and fill it at the tap, water fountain or spring.”

Perrone noted another advantage of using tap water.

“West Chester water has fluoride in it and you can’t get that in bottled water,” he said. “We’re worried about our teeth.”

The borough did not install water bottle fillers on fountains during the recent renovation. Flynn said that as the water fountains age they will be replaced with ones with the capability to fill up personal water bottles easier.