Photo: Ian Poellet · CC BY-SA 3.0Living in Damascus, OR: what to set up and who to call
Damascus has no town government of its own, so Clackamas County runs its elections and most services, and its children attend Gresham-Barlow School District 1J. For a library card, the closest branch is Happy Valley Public Library, 3.4 miles out.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Damascus, 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 Damascus.
Power comes from Portland General Electric
Portland General Electric (Portland General Electric Co), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Damascus. Its homes paid an average of 18.8¢ per kWh in 2025, about $142 a month (its average across Oregon).
Start or move service: portlandgeneral.com · (503) 464-8000
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Sunrise Water Authority
Sunrise Water Authority supplies Damascus: about 80% of residents live in its service area. About 13% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It buys treated surface water (EPA lists Clackamas River Water and North Clackamas County Wc as sellers) and serves 50,003 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 2021–Dec 2023, was 3.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. That’s higher than 81% 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. OR4100635.
5 home internet providers serve Damascus
98% of 3,924 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 66% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Xfinity | Cable | 93% | 2,000/250 |
| Ziply Fiber | Fiber, DSL | 64% | 6,000/6,000 |
| T-Mobile | Fixed wireless | 48% | 100/20 |
| AT&T | Fixed wireless | 35% | 25/3 |
| Verizon | Fixed wireless | 9% | 300/20 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
We don’t have Damascus’ trash rules yet
Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Damascus.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Most of Damascus (66%) is in Gresham-Barlow School District 1J; parts are in North Clackamas School District 12 (14%) and Centennial School District 28J (14%) and Estacada School District 108 (5%).
CSchool gradeSee 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
Damascus is unincorporated, so Clackamas County is the local government.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Jun 2023; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Oct 2, 2026.
Damascus is in ZIP code 97089
ZIP codes where Damascus residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Damascus | ZIP’s residents in Damascus |
|---|---|---|---|
| 97089 | Damascus, OR | 100% | 78% |
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 Damascus
Who supplies Damascus’ drinking water, and has it had violations?
Sunrise Water Authority (EPA ID OR4100635). 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 3.0 ppb (Jan 2021–Dec 2023), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Damascus?
Portland General Electric (Portland General Electric Co), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 18.8¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Damascus?
Xfinity, Ziply Fiber, T-Mobile, AT&T, Verizon (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Damascus?
97089. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Damascus in?
Gresham-Barlow School District 1J. Parts of the city are in North Clackamas School District 12 and Centennial School District 28J and Estacada School District 108.
How do I register to vote in Damascus?
In Oregon you can register online until 21 days before Election Day, in person until 21 days before Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 21 days before). Elections here are run by the Clackamas County Clerk, Elections Office. Check your registration at sos.oregon.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 Oct 2, 2026 (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.