Photo: David Wilson from Oak Park, Illinois, USA · CC BY 2.0Living in Waterloo, IA: what to set up and who to call
Rite Environmental takes trash and recycling in Waterloo, open Mon–Fri 7 am–5 pm (OpenStreetMap). Waterloo has a train station, Iowa Northern Railway.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Waterloo, 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 Waterloo.
Power comes from MidAmerican Energy
MidAmerican Energy (MidAmerican Energy Co), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Waterloo. 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 Waterloo Water Works
Waterloo Water Works supplies Waterloo: about 97% of residents live in its service area. About 3% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It draws ground water and serves 69,504 people in all.
No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 90% of the 597 systems serving 50,001–100,000 people.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan–Dec 2025, was 1.8 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. The highest in five years was 3.0 ppb. That’s higher than 64% 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. IA0790074.
10 home internet providers serve Waterloo
100% of 26,064 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 97% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mediacom Xtream | Cable, Fiber | 100% | 1,000/50 |
| Metronet | Fiber | 91% | 5,120/5,120 |
| Waterloo Fiber | Fiber | 54% | 10,000/10,000 |
| CenturyLink | DSL, Fiber | 25% | 140/20 |
| Verizon | Fixed wireless | 62% | 300/20 |
| Rise Broadband | Fixed wireless | 61% | 25/5 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
Trash day in Waterloo depends on your street
Pickup days, the drop-off and recycling in Waterloo, from the town’s own site.
Your pickup week
- TrashEvery week, on your street’s dayThe town’s pickup map
- Bulky itemsCall to book
Compost Facility / Yard Waste Site
2745 Independence Avenue
- Mon7 am–5 pm
- Tue7 am–5 pm
- Wed7 am–5 pm
- Thu7 am–5 pm
- Fri7 am–5 pm
Hours from OpenStreetMap. They can change with the season, so check with the town before you go.
Accepted at the curb
- Newspaper, magazines, & catalogs
- Corrugated cardboard
- Clean pizza boxes, telephone books
- Envelopes, junk mail, paper bags
- Pop/Beer cartons
- Carbonless forms
- Milk and juice jugs
- Margarine and ice cream tubs
- Yogurt cups
- Pop and Water Bottles
- Cooking oil containers
- Shampoo Bottles
- Aluminum foil, pie pans, trays, cans
- Metal jar lids
From ci.waterloo.ia.us, cms6.revize.com, the town’s official site, checked Oct 21, 2026; pages dated 2026. Rules change: the town’s page is the last word. . Drop-off hours: OpenStreetMap, © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Most of Waterloo (94%) is in Waterloo Community School District; parts are in Hudson Community School District (4%) and Cedar Falls Community School District (2%).
D−School 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 Nov 2025; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Waterloo spans 4 ZIP codes
ZIP codes where Waterloo residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Waterloo | ZIP’s residents in Waterloo |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50701 | Waterloo, IA | 42% | 96% |
| 50702 | Waterloo, IA | 29% | 95% |
| 50703 | Waterloo, IA | 26% | 91% |
| 50707 | Evansdale, IA | 3% | 26% |
A few homes fall in 50613. 50704 is P.O. box or single-organization ZIP with no homes.
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.
Train: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors). ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.
Questions about living in Waterloo
When is the Rite Environmental open?
Mon–Fri 7 am–5 pm, according to OpenStreetMap (as of Oct 9, 2026). Check riteenvironmental.com before you go: the town sets the hours and who may use it.
Who supplies Waterloo’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
Waterloo Water Works (EPA ID IA0790074). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 90% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 1.8 ppb (Jan–Dec 2025), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Waterloo?
MidAmerican Energy (MidAmerican Energy Co), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 11.2¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Waterloo?
Mediacom Xtream, Metronet, Waterloo Fiber, CenturyLink, Verizon, Rise Broadband (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Waterloo?
50701 (42%), 50702 (29%), 50703 (26%), 50707 (3%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Waterloo in?
Waterloo Community School District. Parts of the city are in Hudson Community School District and Cedar Falls Community School District.
How do I register to vote in Waterloo?
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 Black Hawk 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: Waterloo’s own website (ci.waterloo.ia.us, cms6.revize.com), read Oct 21, 2026, pickup and drop-off facts extracted and checked against the page they came from. Drop-off hours: 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.