Photo: Larry Pieniazek, Lar (commons) or Lar(en:wp) (primary) · CC BY 2.5Living in Forest Hills, MI: what to set up and who to call
Forest Hills has no town government of its own, so Kent County runs its elections and most services, and its children attend Forest Hills Public Schools. The Grand Rapids water system has a clean five-year EPA record, but its latest lead result, 7.0 ppb, was higher than 95% of similar systems’ (the action level is 15).
I’m new in town
What to set up in Forest Hills, 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 Forest Hills.
Power comes from DTE
DTE (DTE Electric Co.), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Forest Hills. Its homes paid an average of 20.2¢ per kWh in 2025, about $126 a month (its average across Michigan, for customers on its standard service). Michigan lets you buy power from another supplier; 0% of DTE’s home customers do, and DTE still delivers it.
Start or move service: www.dteenergy.com · (800) 477-4747
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Grand Rapids water system
The Grand Rapids water system supplies Forest Hills: about 41% of residents live in its service area. Ada Township serves another 26%. About 34% 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 306,901 people in all.
No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 86% of the 84 systems serving 250,001–500,000 people.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan–Dec 2025, was 7.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. The highest in five years was 14.1 ppb. That’s higher than 95% 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. Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. MI0002790.
5 home internet providers serve Forest Hills
97% of 9,697 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 12% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Xfinity | Cable | 95% | 2,000/250 |
| AT&T | DSL, Fixed wireless, Fiber | 42% | 100/20 |
| Metronet | Fiber | 5% | 5,120/5,120 |
| T-Mobile | Fixed wireless | 72% | 100/20 |
| Verizon | Fixed wireless | 71% | 300/20 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
We don’t have Forest Hills’ trash rules yet
Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Forest Hills.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Most of Forest Hills (76%) is in Forest Hills Public Schools; parts are in Lowell Area Schools (22%).
Test scores and every school: see Schools →U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.
No town hall: the county runs things
Forest Hills is unincorporated, so Kent County is the local government.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Nov 2025; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
Forest Hills spans 2 ZIP codes
ZIP codes where Forest Hills residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Forest Hills | ZIP’s residents in Forest Hills |
|---|---|---|---|
| 49301 | Ada, MI | 60% | 83% |
| 49546 | Grand Rapids, MI | 39% | 31% |
A few homes fall in 49525, 49331.
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 Forest Hills
Who supplies Forest Hills’ drinking water, and has it had violations?
The Grand Rapids water system (EPA ID MI0002790). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 86% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 7.0 ppb (Jan–Dec 2025), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Forest Hills?
DTE (DTE Electric Co.), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 20.2¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Forest Hills?
Xfinity, AT&T, Metronet, T-Mobile, Verizon (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Forest Hills?
49301 (60%), 49546 (39%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Forest Hills in?
Forest Hills Public Schools. Parts of the city are in Lowell Area Schools.
How do I register to vote in Forest Hills?
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 Cascade 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 National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.