Photo: Jared Winkler · CC BY-SA 4.0Living in Carter Lake, IA: what to set up and who to call
The closest public drop-off to Carter Lake is City of Omaha recycling drop-off site, 2 miles out; the town decides whether residents may use it. Public schools here are run by Council Bluffs Community School District.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Carter Lake, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.
Power, water and internet
Who to call to start service at a new address in Carter Lake.
Power comes from MidAmerican Energy
MidAmerican Energy (MidAmerican Energy Co), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Carter Lake. Its homes paid an average of 11.2¢ per kWh in 2025, about $93 a month (its average across Iowa).
Start or move service: midamericanenergy.com · (888) 427-5632
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Carter Lake Water District
Carter Lake Water District supplies Carter Lake: about 93% of residents live in its service area. About 7% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It buys treated surface water (EPA lists Metropolitan Utilities District as seller) and serves 3,791 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.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2022–Dec 2024, was 3.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. That’s higher than 80% of similar systems’ latest results.
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 (EPA’s estimate). Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. IA7812079.
5 home internet providers serve Carter Lake
99% of 1,557 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 0% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cox Communications | Cable | 96% | 2,000/100 |
| CenturyLink | DSL, Fiber | 74% | 140/20 |
| T-Mobile | Fixed wireless | 76% | 100/20 |
| AT&T | Fixed wireless | 62% | 25/3 |
| Verizon | Fixed wireless | 27% | 300/20 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
The nearest public drop-off is 2 miles away
Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Carter Lake.
City of Omaha recycling drop-off site
· run by Wasteline
This isn’t Carter Lake’s own facility. Whether Carter Lake residents may use it is the town’s rule: check cityofcarterlake.com.
OpenStreetMap, as of Oct 9, 2026. © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Carter Lake is in Council Bluffs Community School District.
DSchool gradeSee Schools →U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.
Town hall and registering to vote
Who to call, and how to register.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Jun 2023; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Carter Lake is in ZIP code 51510
ZIP codes where Carter Lake residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Carter Lake | ZIP’s residents in Carter Lake |
|---|---|---|---|
| 51510 | Carter Lake, IA | 100% | 100% |
Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.
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 Carter Lake
Who supplies Carter Lake’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
Carter Lake Water District (EPA ID IA7812079). 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 3.0 ppb (Jan 2022–Dec 2024), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Carter Lake?
MidAmerican Energy (MidAmerican Energy Co), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 11.2¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Carter Lake?
Cox Communications, CenturyLink, T-Mobile, AT&T, Verizon (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Carter Lake?
51510. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Carter Lake in?
Council Bluffs Community School District.
How do I register to vote in Carter Lake?
In Iowa you can register online until 15 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 15 days before). Elections here are run by the Pottawattamie County Auditor. Check your registration at sos.iowa.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: OpenStreetMap, Geofabrik extract of Oct 9, 2026. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
- 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 Nov 18, 2024 (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.