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Chambers Bay Golf Course Setup Staging (18000263879)Photo: Atomic Taco from Seattle, WA, USA · CC BY-SA 2.0
The University Place handbook

Living in University Place, WA: what to set up and who to call

Power in University Place comes from Peninsula Light Company, a cooperative utility rather than a private company. University Place Library, at 3609 Market Place W, Suite 100, is the library in town.

I’m new in town

What to set up in University Place, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.

Home services

Power, water and internet

Who to call to start service at a new address in University Place.

Electricity

Power comes from Peninsula Light Company

Peninsula Light Company (Peninsula Light Company), a cooperative utility, serves all of University Place. Its homes paid an average of 11.3¢ per kWh in 2025, about $138 a month (its average across Washington).

Start or move service: www.penlight.org · (253) 857-5950

Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.

Drinking water · reported to EPA

Water comes from City of Tacoma Water Division

City of Tacoma Water Division supplies almost all of University Place. It draws surface water and serves 446,170 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.

Lead, 90th percentile0.0 ppb
015 ppb action level20

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 1.0 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. Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. WA5386800.

Internet

7 home internet providers serve University Place

100% of 9,756 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 18% can get fiber.

ProviderTechnologyAddressesFastest (Mbps)
XfinityCable100%2,000/250
LightcurveCable, Fiber79%1,000/12
CenturyLinkDSL, Fiber33%140/20
Quantum FiberFiber18%2,000/1,000
VerizonFixed wireless65%300/20
T-MobileFixed wireless49%100/20

FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.

Trash & recycling

We don’t have University Place’s trash rules yet

Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in University Place.

Schools

Where your child goes to school

Public school districts and the school path by grade.

University Place kids go to
PK–44 elementary schoolsDepends on your address
5–72 middle schoolsDepends on your address
10–12Curtis Senior HighUniversity Place School District

Most of University Place (82%) is in University Place School District; parts are in Tacoma Public Schools (12%) and Steilacoom Historical School District (5%).

ASchool gradeSee Schools →

U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.

Government & voting

Town hall and registering to vote

Who to call, and how to register.

Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Sep 2024; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.

ZIP codes & area codes

University Place spans 2 ZIP codes

ZIP codes where University Place residents live, with the share of the town in each.

ZIPPost office nameShare of University PlaceZIP’s residents in University Place
98466Tacoma, WA57%67%
98467University Place, WA43%91%
Area code253Wikidata

Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.

Everyday places

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 University Place

Who supplies University Place’s drinking water, and has it had violations?

City of Tacoma Water Division (EPA ID WA5386800). 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 0.0 ppb (Jan 2023–Dec 2025), against a 15 ppb action level.

Who provides electricity in University Place?

Peninsula Light Company (Peninsula Light Company), a cooperative utility. Its homes paid about 11.3¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).

What internet providers serve University Place?

Xfinity, Lightcurve, CenturyLink, Quantum Fiber, Verizon, T-Mobile (FCC, as of December 2025).

What ZIP codes are in University Place?

98466 (57%), 98467 (43%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.

What school district is University Place in?

University Place School District. Parts of the city are in Tacoma Public Schools and Steilacoom Historical School District.

How do I register to vote in University Place?

In Washington you can register online until 8 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (received 8 days before). Elections here are run by the Pierce County Auditor. Check your registration at voter.votewa.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 Sep 30, 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.