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The Chester handbook

Living in Chester, CT: what to set up and who to call

Tap water in most of Chester comes from Ctwc - Shoreline Region-Chester System, which has a clean five-year EPA record (about 20% of systems its size had a health-based violation) and a latest lead result below detection. Elections in Chester are run by Chester itself; register with the Chester Town Clerk.

I’m new in town

What to set up in Chester, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.

Home services

Power, water and internet

Who to call to start service at a new address in Chester.

Electricity

Power comes from Eversource

Eversource (Connecticut Light & Power Co.), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Chester. Its homes paid an average of 28.9¢ per kWh in 2025, about $195 a month (its average across Connecticut, for customers on its standard service). Connecticut lets you buy power from another supplier; 17% of Eversource’s home customers do, and Eversource still delivers it.

Start or move service: cl-p.com · (800) 286-2000

Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.

Drinking water · reported to EPA

Water comes from Ctwc - Shoreline Region-Chester System

Ctwc - Shoreline Region-Chester System supplies Chester: about 64% of residents live in its service area. About 28% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It draws surface water and serves 5,030 people in all.

No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 80% of the 5,012 systems serving 3,301–10,000 people.

Lead, 90th percentile0.0 ppb
015 ppb action level20

The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan–Dec 2026, was 0.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. The highest in five years was 1.6 ppb. Results below detection are reported as 0, so 0 doesn’t mean no lead at any tap.

The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report

EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0. Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. CT0261031.

Internet

5 home internet providers serve Chester

99% of 1,532 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 77% can get fiber.

ProviderTechnologyAddressesFastest (Mbps)
XfinityCable98%2,000/250
FrontierFiber, DSL80%7,000/7,000
T-MobileFixed wireless32%100/20
AT&TFixed wireless16%25/3
VerizonFixed wireless11%300/20

FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.

Trash & recycling

Trash and recycling in Chester

Pickup days, the drop-off and recycling in Chester, from the town’s own site.

What goes in the recycling bin

Accepted at the curb

  • Brown Amazon/mailing envelopes
  • Cereal, cracker, pasta boxes
  • Food cans (pet or people)
  • Snack cans (Like Pringles)
Furniture, appliances and bulky itemsChester residents may bring bulky waste to the Deep River Transfer Station under the Chester-Deep River agreement, paying the same item fees as Deep River residents (e.g., refrigerator $10 per unit; mattresses accepted)

We couldn’t find pickup days or drop-off hours. Check chesterct.gov →

From chesterct.gov, the town’s official site, checked Oct 23, 2026; pages dated 07/01/2026, July 1, 2025. Rules change: the town’s page is the last word. .

Schools

Where your child goes to school

Public school districts and the school path by grade.

Chester kids go to
PK–6Chester Elementary SchoolChester School District
7–8John Winthrop Middle Schoolin Deep River
9–12Valley Regional High Schoolin Deep River

Chester is in two districts that split the grades: Chester School District and Region School District 04.

B+School gradeSee Schools →

U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.

Government & voting

Town hall and registering to vote

Who to call, and how to register.

Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Mar 2024; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.

ZIP codes & area codes

Chester is in ZIP code 06412

ZIP codes where Chester residents live, with the share of the town in each.

ZIPPost office nameShare of ChesterZIP’s residents in Chester
06412Chester, CT100%100%
Area code860Wikidata

Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.

Everyday places

Getting around, the ER and the library

One line each; the subject pages have the rest.

ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.

Questions about living in Chester

Who supplies Chester’s drinking water, and has it had violations?

Ctwc - Shoreline Region-Chester System (EPA ID CT0261031). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 80% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 0.0 ppb (Jan–Dec 2026), against a 15 ppb action level.

Who provides electricity in Chester?

Eversource (Connecticut Light & Power Co.), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 28.9¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).

What internet providers serve Chester?

Xfinity, Frontier, T-Mobile, AT&T, Verizon (FCC, as of December 2025).

What ZIP codes are in Chester?

06412. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.

What school district is Chester in?

Chester School District and Region School District 04.

How do I register to vote in Chester?

In Connecticut you can register online until 18 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 18 days before). Elections here are run by the Chester Town Clerk. Check your registration at portaldir.ct.gov.

Sources & dates

Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.

  • Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
  • Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
  • Trash: Chester’s own website (chesterct.gov), read Oct 23, 2026, pickup and drop-off facts extracted and checked against the page they came from.
  • ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
  • Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
  • Registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
  • Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
  • Internet: FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.