Living in Forest Hills, NC: what to set up and who to call
Tap water in most of Forest Hills comes from Forest Hills Water System, which has a clean five-year EPA record (about 23% of systems its size had a health-based violation) and a latest lead result below detection. The closest public drop-off to Forest Hills is Jackson County Recycling Center, 1 mile out; the town decides whether residents may use it.
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 Duke Energy
Duke Energy (Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Forest Hills. Its homes paid an average of 13.4¢ per kWh in 2025, about $134 a month (its average across North Carolina).
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Forest Hills Water System
Forest Hills Water System supplies Forest Hills: about 69% of residents live in its service area. Tuckaseigee Water & Sewer Auth serves another 5%. About 27% 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 323 people in all.
No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 77% of the 15,074 systems serving 101–500 people.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2023–Dec 2025, was 0.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. The highest in five years was 2.5 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 (EPA’s estimate). Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. NC0150107.
4 home internet providers serve Forest Hills
95% of 116 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 0% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Optimum | Cable | 92% | 940/35 |
| Frontier | DSL | 72% | 10/1 |
| Verizon | Fixed wireless | 87% | 300/20 |
| T-Mobile | Fixed wireless | 72% | 25/3 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
The nearest public drop-off is 1 miles away
Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Forest Hills.
Jackson County Recycling Center
· run by Jackson County
This isn’t Forest Hills’ own facility. Whether Forest Hills residents may use it is the town’s rule: check the town’s office.
OpenStreetMap, as of Oct 9, 2026. © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Forest Hills is in Jackson County Schools.
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.
Town hall and registering to vote
Who to call, and how to register.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Jul 2024; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Forest Hills is in ZIP code 28723
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 28723 | Cullowhee, NC | 100% | 2% |
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?
Forest Hills Water System (EPA ID NC0150107). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 77% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 0.0 ppb (Jan 2023–Dec 2025), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Forest Hills?
Duke Energy (Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 13.4¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Forest Hills?
Optimum, Frontier, Verizon, T-Mobile (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Forest Hills?
28723. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Forest Hills in?
Jackson County Schools.
How do I register to vote in Forest Hills?
In North Carolina you can register online until 25 days before Election Day, in person with same-day registration during the early voting period, or by mail (postmarked 25 days before). Elections here are run by the Jackson County Board of Elections. Check your registration at vt.ncsbe.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.