Photo: Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 4.0Living in Buffalo, ND: what to set up and who to call
In Buffalo, trash day is Monday (Fat Man Trash collects). The nearest emergency room is CHI Mercy Health, 21 miles away.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Buffalo, 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 Buffalo.
Power comes from Xcel Energy
Xcel Energy (Northern States Power Co. (Minnesota)), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Buffalo. Its homes paid an average of 13.5¢ per kWh in 2025, about $104 a month (its average across North Dakota).
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from City of Buffalo water system
The City of Buffalo water system supplies Buffalo: about 50% of residents live in its service area. About 50% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It buys treated ground water (EPA lists Cass Rural Water District-Phase III as seller) and serves 188 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 2021–Dec 2023, was 1.5 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. That’s higher than 65% 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. ND0900134.
2 home internet providers serve Buffalo
100% of 134 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 100% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inter-Community Telephone | Fiber | 100% | 5,000/5,000 |
| Midco | Cable | 95% | 1,250/250 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
Trash day in Buffalo is Monday
Pickup days, the drop-off and recycling in Buffalo, from the town’s own site.
This month
- TrashEvery week
- RecyclingOnce a month, Tue
From buffalond.com, the town’s official site, checked Oct 22, 2026. Rules change: the town’s page is the last word. .
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Buffalo is in Maple Valley Public School District 4.
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 Sep 2025; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Jul 30, 2024.
Buffalo is in ZIP code 58011
ZIP codes where Buffalo residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Buffalo | ZIP’s residents in Buffalo |
|---|---|---|---|
| 58011 | Buffalo, ND | 100% | 48% |
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 Buffalo
Who supplies Buffalo’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
The City of Buffalo water system (EPA ID ND0900134). 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 1.5 ppb (Jan 2021–Dec 2023), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Buffalo?
Xcel Energy (Northern States Power Co. (Minnesota)), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 13.5¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Buffalo?
Inter-Community Telephone, Midco (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Buffalo?
58011. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Buffalo in?
Maple Valley Public School District 4.
How do I register to vote in Buffalo?
North Dakota has no voter registration: you show ID at the polls. Elections here are run by the Cass County Auditor. Check your registration at vip.sos.nd.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: Buffalo’s own website (buffalond.com), read Oct 22, 2026, pickup and drop-off facts extracted and checked against the page they came from.
- 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 Jul 30, 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.