Sessions Schoolhouse · Photo: kennethaw88 · CC BY 4.0Living in Berlin Township, MI: what to set up and who to call
The Ionia water system has a clean five-year EPA record, but its latest lead result, 5.1 ppb, was higher than 92% of similar systems’ (the action level is 15). New voters sign up with the Berlin Township Clerk, which runs Berlin Township’s elections.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Berlin Township, 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 Berlin Township.
Power comes from Consumers Energy
Consumers Energy (Consumers Energy Co.), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Berlin Township. Its homes paid an average of 20.7¢ per kWh in 2025, about $134 a month (its average across Michigan).
Start or move service: consumersenergy.com · (800) 477-5050
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Ionia water system
The Ionia water system supplies Berlin Township: about 23% of residents live in its service area. About 77% 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 11,708 people in all.
No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 83% of the 3,525 systems serving 10,001–50,000 people.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2024–Dec 2026, was 5.1 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. That’s higher than 92% 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. MI0003370.
Which providers serve Berlin Township
This card will list the home internet providers the FCC’s National Broadband Map shows in Berlin Township, the share of addresses that can get 100/20 Mbps and the share with fiber, with the map’s “as of” date.
Source to come: FCC Broadband Data Collection.
We don’t have Berlin Township’s trash rules yet
Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Berlin Township.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Most of Berlin Township (53%) is in Saranac Community Schools; parts are in Lakewood Public Schools (22%) and Ionia Public Schools (17%) and Berlin Township School District 3 (8%).
A−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 Sep 12, 2025.
Berlin Township spans 4 ZIP codes
ZIP codes where Berlin Township residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Berlin Township | ZIP’s residents in Berlin Township |
|---|---|---|---|
| 48846 | Ionia, MI | 61% | 6% |
| 48881 | Saranac, MI | 31% | 12% |
| 48849 | Lake Odessa, MI | 7% | 2% |
| 48875 | Portland, MI | 1% | 0% |
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 Berlin Township
Who supplies Berlin Township’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
The Ionia water system (EPA ID MI0003370). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 83% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 5.1 ppb (Jan 2024–Dec 2026), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Berlin Township?
Consumers Energy (Consumers Energy Co.), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 20.7¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What ZIP codes are in Berlin Township?
48846 (61%), 48881 (31%), 48849 (7%), 48875 (1%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Berlin Township in?
Saranac Community Schools. Parts of the city are in Lakewood Public Schools and Ionia Public Schools and Berlin Township School District 3.
How do I register to vote in Berlin Township?
In Michigan 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 Berlin Township Clerk. Check your registration at mvic.sos.state.mi.us.
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 Sep 12, 2025 (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): pending.